ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Badgers

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when his Department expects to undertake research on the use of Polymerase Chain Reaction technology to detect M. bovis in badger setts; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department, in collaboration with other researchers in the UK, is already developing procedures to detect "Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis)" from live badgers and their excretions using Polymerase Chain Reaction. The results for detection of M. bovis at setts reported by researchers at Warwick are encouraging, but the test needs to be fully validated prior to consideration for use in the field or for routine diagnosis. We are currently considering research proposals on how best to put in place the work that is needed to take this forward.

Carbon Offsetting

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to encourage individuals to use carbon offsetting schemes.

Ian Pearson: Offsetting should be set in a hierarchy of actions. The most effective way to avoid and reduce emissions is by changing behaviour. When it is not possible to avoid or reduce emissions, consumers should consider offsetting. When carried out in this context, we support the use of offsets generated by robust and verifiable mechanisms bound by international regulation
	On 18 January, DEFRA launched a consultation on a voluntary Code of Best Practice for the provision of carbon offsetting to customers. The purpose of this code is to provide clarity to customers and, thereby, confidence in a growing market.
	The Government are leading by example in taking action on their own emissions, with all central Government ministerial and official air travel being captured under carbon offsetting schemes since April 2006. Around 30 Departments, agencies and bodies are participating in the Government Carbon Offsetting Fund.

Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the costs to farmers in England of implementing the integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) measures; what representations he has received on the costs; and if he will review the appropriateness of the current thresholds for the application of the IPPC measures to  (a) pig and  (b) poultry farmers;
	(2)  whether a regulatory impact assessment has been carried out on the application of the integrated pollution prevention and control regulations to  (a) pig and  (b) poultry farmers.

Ben Bradshaw: The integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) directive applies only to poultry installations with places for more than 40,000 birds and to installations with places for more than 2,000 production pigs or 750 sows. Since they are set in the directive, those thresholds cannot be changed unilaterally by the UK. Large units are those greater than 10 times the lower threshold, that is, those greater than 400,000 birds, 20,000 production pigs or 7,500 sows.
	Under the Environment Agency's (EA) scheme of charges, intensive livestock installations will be charged £3,331 for a permit application and then annual charges of £2,229 for a small installation and £2,794 for a large one. The EA is obliged to consult annually on the scheme of charges, before seeking the Secretary of State's approval.
	In England, the total capital costs of meeting the requirements of the IPPC directive were estimated by the Rural Development Service, in February 2006, to be £64.6 million with annual costs of £20.2 million. This includes permitting and improvements likely to be necessary over the next few years. However, there are significant uncertainties about these estimates.
	A regulatory impact assessment was carried out on the Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000 prior to their making. However, this did not consider in detail each individual industry sector in terms of the transposition of the IPPC directive.
	My noble Friend Lord Rooker recently met representatives of the industry to discuss permit charges and in particular how annual charges might be reduced through streamlined approaches to inspection. The EA and the National Farmers Union are currently considering options including what greater use might be made of assurance scheme visits.

Marine Fisheries Agency

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding he allocated to the Marine Fisheries Agency for  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) 2007-08; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The following table shows the total 2006-07 and 2007-08 DEFRA funding to the Marine Fisheries Agency. The figures are gross of funding which is expected from the EU, and are subject to periodic in year review.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2006-07 29,511 
			 2007-08 31,891

Railway Land

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to combat litter and refuse on railway land.

Ben Bradshaw: Under section 89 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, railway undertakers and operators have a duty to keep their "relevant land" clear of litter and refuse. This includes station areas to which the public have access, tracks that are within 100 m of platforms (provided that the public have access to the platforms) and tracks in urban areas. Where this duty is not complied with, local authorities (LAs) may issue a litter abatement notice on the railway undertaker or operator, requiring the clearance of the litter and refuse and prohibiting further defacement of the land. Any member of the public can also take action via the magistrates court, seeking a litter abatement order to get the litter cleared.
	There is no duty on rail undertakers or operators to keep other track areas clean. However, where such land becomes defaced by litter and refuse and this is detrimental to the amenity of the area, LAs can issue a litter clearing notice on the occupier or owner (if unoccupied), requiring the clearance of the litter and, if necessary, reasonable steps to be taken to prevent future defacement. This power was introduced by the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 and commenced on 6 April last year.
	It is an offence to fail to comply with a litter abatement notice, a litter abatement order or a litter clearing notice.

Slaughterhouses

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many slaughterhouses in England are licensed for  (a) halal and  (b) kosher slaughter.

Barry Gardiner: This information is not routinely collected. The most recent data available for Great Britain, from the Animal Welfare Review 2003, is broken down by species as follows:
	
		
			  Species  Number of premises 
			  (a) Halal  
			 Lambs 5 
			 Sheep 4 
			 Goats 2 
			 Broilers 8 
			 Hens 5 
			 Ducks 2 
			   
			  (b) Kosher  
			 Cattle 2 
			 Calves 1 
			 Young Lambs 5 
			 Broilers 5 
			 Hens 4 
			 Turkeys 4 
			 Ducks 3

Water Resources

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what improvements are planned to be made to the infrastructure enabling rainwater falling during winter months to be stored for use during the summer; what expenditure is planned on that infrastructure; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: All water companies in England and Wales have water resource management plans which look ahead 25 years and include projections of current and future demands for water. The plans, which are regularly updated, show how water companies propose to meet demand for water, and will include any new water supply resources that are needed. These plans are due to become a statutory requirement in April 2007 under provisions in the Water Act 2003 and will then be subject to public consultation.
	Water companies in the south have identified the need for five new and three extended reservoirs in their 25-year water resource management plans.
	In their 2004 "Periodic Review of Future Water and Sewerage Charges 2005-2010", Ofwat, the economic regulator, assumes water companies' capital expenditure to be £1.7 billion to maintain the balance between supply and demand for water, and in some cases to enhance the security of water supply. This capital expenditure covers a range of measures including leakage reduction, upgrading water treatment processes, enhancements to water treatment and distribution, network improvements, groundwater resources and metering.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how much the House paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The House makes use of recruitment agencies to fill some vacancies on a temporary basis. The total spent on temporary agency staff over the last four years is:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2003-04 2.29 
			 2004-05 1.52 
			 2005-06 1.56 
			 2006-07 (to date) 2.43 
		
	
	The House does not retain information for earlier years. As a percentage of total staff costs, the cost of agency staff varies between 2.6 per cent. (2005-06) and 5.2 per cent. (current year). The increase in the current year is due mainly to the transitional arrangements for the development of the Parliamentary ICT Service (PICT) as a joint body serving both Houses. The use of agency staff is expected to moderate next year.

Roof Terrace: Noise

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many complaints about noise on the roof terrace were received in each of the last five years.

Nick Harvey: There is no record of any written complaints about noise on the roof terrace. However it is acknowledged that loud conversation can be a distraction to staff in nearby offices who have occasionally complained and this is reflected in the rules by a request to keep noise levels down.

TRANSPORT

A21

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to begin the tender process for the dualling of the A21  (a) between Tonbridge and Pembury and  (b) between Kippings Cross and Lamberhurst.

Stephen Ladyman: I expect the joint tender process for A21 Tonbridge to Pembury Dualling and A21 Kippings Cross to Lamberhurst improvement to begin in late March 2007.

Blue Badges

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many blue badges were used fraudulently in  (a) 2005 and  (b) 2006.

Gillian Merron: Enforcement of the disabled persons' parking badge scheme is a matter for local authorities. There is no legal requirement for local authorities to provide the Department with details of fraudulent use of badges nor does the Department currently ask for that information as part of its annual blue badge statistical survey of local authorities in England. The devolved Administrations are responsible for the scheme in other parts of the UK.
	The issues of misuse and abuse of badges were considered as part of the review of the blue badge scheme. In concluding the review, some 47 recommendations were made to Ministers through the Disabled Persons' Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC)—the Department's statutory advisers on the transport needs of disabled people—including a number of enforcement measures. The Government accepted most of these and is currently taking them forward. A summary of the recommendations and the Government's response to them was placed in the House Library on 18 December 2002.

Boatmasters

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of the Minister of State for Transport of 10 January 2007,  Official Report, column 97WH, what the evidential basis was for the statement that no test of local knowledge is necessary for certification of boatmasters of vessels navigating the Thames downstream of the Thames Barrier.

Stephen Ladyman: The criteria for determining local knowledge requirements were drawn up during consultation on the development of the new Boatmasters' Licence. The extension of the local knowledge area downstream of the Thames Barrier was not considered necessary following an assessment of the modern day traffic density and tide and current conditions against those criteria. The assessment was carried out on behalf of the Port of London Authority.

Boatmasters

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the  (a) review and  (b) implementation of the proposed Boatmaster's Licence.

Stephen Ladyman: The review of the proposed Boatmaster's Licence regime was completed in late 2006 and the regulations implementing the new regime came into force on 1 January 2007.

Civilian Flights

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether UK aviation authorities are obliged to collect personal data on all persons travelling on civilian flights that begin or end on UK territory;
	(2)  whether UK aviation authorities are obliged to collect personal data on all persons travelling on civilian flights that stopover in UK territory for refuelling or other purposes;
	(3)  what personal details are collected by aviation authorities on persons travelling on civilian flights that begin or end on UK territory; how long this information is held; which body is responsible for holding this information; and which Government Departments have access to this information;
	(4)  whether UK aviation authorities are obliged to collect personal data on  (a) civilians,  (b) military personnel and  (c) diplomatic personnel travelling on (i) military aircraft and (ii) non-military aircraft registered to a sovereign Government (1) to and (2) through the UK territory.

Gillian Merron: In the United Kingdom the aviation authority is defined as the Secretary of State for Transport and, for the purpose of managing policy on airline tariffs, the Civil Aviation Authority. The UK aviation authority is not obliged to collect any personal data on people travelling to, from or via the UK.

Highways Agency: Expenditure

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much the Highways Agency spent on programme expenditure in Tunbridge Wells local authority area in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Stephen Ladyman: The information requested is not available.

Historic Vessels

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what  (a) statutory provisions and  (b) custom and practice apply to the display of port letters and numbers on historic vessels which are not fishing for profit; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: There is no statutory provision which allows historic fishing vessels to display port letters and numbers once they have been removed from the Register. Regulation 113 of The Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993 states that
	"If a ship's registration is terminated, whether by expiration of the registration period or otherwise, the marking prescribed under these regulations must be removed from the ship and written confirmation of that removal must be sent to the Registrar"
	Ships that were previously granted Historic Registration status by the Registrar before the 1993 regulations came into force on 21 March 1994 have been allowed to retain the de-faced port letters and numbers provided they can produce the original letter and notification granting such status. New applications are not being considered given the requirement made under regulation 113.

Local Transport

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much local transport grant was given to City of York unitary council in each year since the council's creation; and what criteria are used to assess how much each local authority receives.

Gillian Merron: The City of York council was created in 1996. Total local transport capital funding for the authority each year has been as follows:
	
		
			   Total funding (£ million) 
			 1997-98 2.212 
			 1998-99 1.148 
			 19992000 2.095 
			 2000-01 2.262 
			 2001-02 5.995 
			 2002-03 6.155 
			 2003-04 7.881 
			 2004-05 6.302 
			 2005-06 6.225 
			 2006-07 6.378 
		
	
	This included capital funding for major schemes (those over £5 million), maintenance and local integrated transport.
	Total funding for 2007-08 is £6.31 million, which was announced as part of the 2006 local transport settlement in December. This is divided into an integrated transport block and funding for maintenance.
	The funding allocations for the integrated transport block for York announced in December as part of the 2006 local transport settlement are as follows:
	
		
			  City of York 
			   Allocation £ million 
			 2007-08 4.141 
			 2008-09 3.737 
			 2009-10 3.374 
			 2010-11 2.986 
		
	
	The 2007-08 allocation is the previously published planning guideline with an uplift of 12.5 per cent. because the council's local transport plan for 2006- 2011 was assessed as excellent.
	In addition, the total capital highway maintenance funding allocation for City of York council for 2007-08 is £1.419 million, all of which is formula funding. We have also provided £0.75 million for capital works on the detrunked sections of the A1079 and A1237. This is in addition to the maintenance allocation outlined above.
	Major schemes are no longer included in the local transport settlement. We responded separately in July to the advice from the regions about their priorities for major transport projects—including those promoted by local authorities—up to 2015-16. The Yorkshire and the Humber region is getting £175 million over the next two years.
	Nationally, £683 million is being provided for highways capital maintenance in 2007-08. Most (£634 million) is being distributed formulaically. The formula reflects the size and condition of local roads, bridges and street lights. Funding of £47 million is being allocated in response to bids for major maintenance and strengthening on the primary route network and for smaller authorities' exceptional maintenance schemes, and £2 million is to be allocated at a future date.
	We are providing £571 million for integrated transport in 2007-08. Its distribution is influenced by three factors: a formula representing local pressures, the previous pattern of distribution and how well authorities have planned and delivered their transport objectives. Indicative allocations of £1,760 million are also being made for the three-year period from 2008-09 to 2010-11 to provide increased certainty and stability for local authorities to plan ahead. These are subject to the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Local Transport

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how his Department assesses the quality and performance of local authorities' local transport plans; what assessment his Department has made of City of York council's plans; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: As part of the 2006 local transport settlement, each of the 82 local transport plans in England (outside London) has been assessed against benchmarks grouped into nine criteria. These criteria cover areas such as road safety and congestion as well as how the plan fits in with wider transport policy aims and reflects local priorities. They are based on the central Government and Local Government Association agreed set of shared priorities for transport.
	For each of the criteria, each plan is assessed as being weak, fair, good or excellent. Plan classifications are derived from the balance of the criteria classifications.
	The City of York council's second local transport plan (for 2006-11) was assessed as "excellent". The "excellent" classification means that the Department found evidence of a very high standard of transport planning. The plan builds on the foundations of the first plan (for 2001-06), which has delivered a wide range of benefits for local people.
	These include the development of very successful park and ride systems and the new "Overground" bus network, which will evolve into a comprehensive public transport network for local users. The City of York council has already reported a growing number of people using the bus network, in addition to the increasing numbers of people making use of the improved facilities for walking and cycling.
	Together with a robust parking management policy and the introduction of the urban traffic congestion management system, these improvements have delivered a significant reduction in traffic and cars parked in the city.

Motorway Cameras

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason a number of cameras on tall yellow-painted poles have been sited on the M1 motorway near to the junction with the M18 and on the M18 carriageway verge near to the M1; whether these cameras are permanent; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The Highways Agency have erected speed cameras between Junction 31 (A57) and Junction 32 (M18) while works to construct a fourth lane of the northbound and southbound carriageway of the M1 are ongoing. The cameras have been installed to enforce a 50 mph speed limit for the safety of drivers and road workers. The cameras will be removed once the works have been completed.

Railways

James Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of standing passengers on peak hour trains between Waterloo and  (a) Fleet,  (b)Winchfield,  (c) Hook,  (d) Liphook and  (e) Bentley stations; and what projections of these figures he has made for each of the next 20 years.

Tom Harris: holding answer 24 January 2007
	The Department does not hold this information.
	With regards to future usage, the Network Rail Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS) assumed a growth of 20 per cent. over 10 years. The Department, in letting the new South Western Franchise, asked bidders to develop innovative means to manage the expected increase in capacity.

Rights of Way: Disabled Access

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what powers are available to the highways authority to ensure rights of way are accessible to disabled people.

Barry Gardiner: I have been asked to reply.
	Recent legislation requires provision for disabled people to be considered equally with that of other rights of way users—for example, when determining the management of access to the countryside. The most significant areas of legislation are outlined as follows:
	Disability Discrimination Acts—The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 covers all functions of public bodies, not just services and, therefore, includes the provision of public footpaths and other rights of way. It requires public bodies to promote disability equality and to have had Disability Equality Schemes in place since December 2006. A Disability Equality Scheme needs to:
	i. Explain how equality for disabled people will be promoted
	ii. Challenge discrimination against disabled people
	iii. Help remove barriers for all disabled people.
	The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000—Under section 60 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (the CROW Act), local highway authorities are required to prepare and publish a Rights of Way Improvement Plan by November 2007. They are also required to review it not less than 10 years after publication. In developing the plan, the needs of disabled people must be taken into consideration. Further advice on what this involves is contained in the statutory guidance issued to local highway authorities by DEFRA in November 2002.
	In addition, under section 69 of the CROW Act, to be commenced later this year, highway authorities must consider the needs of disabled people when authorising the erection of stiles and gates or other works on footpaths or bridleways.
	Local highway authorities also have a duty to prevent, as far as possible, the stopping up or obstruction of public rights of way. Failure to do so can have a significant effect on accessibility for disabled people.

Road Building and Improvements

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of new motorway and trunk road to at least dual carriageway standard are planned.

Stephen Ladyman: The following table lists the trunk road and motorway schemes currently in the Targeted Programme of Improvements, which provides new or additional lengths of motorway and trunk road to at least dual carriageway standard.
	These schemes will be delivered subject to the satisfactory completion of statutory processes and the availability of funding.
	
		
			  Scheme  Anticipated start of works date  Length of scheme (miles)  Additional lane miles 
			 M1 J31-J32 Widening On site 22 January 2007 1.24 2.49 
			 A595 Ration-Lillyhall Improvement January 2007 3.23 12.93 
			 A1 Bramham-Wetherby (including Wetherby Bypass) Spring 2007 6.21 14.91 
			 M1 J21-30 Widening (Phase 1) Summer 2007 14.60 29.21 
			 M25 J1b-3 Widening Summer 2007 2.67 5.59 
			 A1 Dishforth to Leeming (A1 Dishforth to Barton) Spring 2008 24.67 52.82 
			 M27 J11-J12 Climbing Lanes Spring 2008 1.99 2.30 
			 M27 J3-J4 Widening Spring 2008 2.55 5.16 
			 A421 Bedford to M1 Junction 13 Autumn 2008 8.02 32.69 
			 M1 J10-J13 Widening Winter 2008 14.17 28.40 
			 M62 J25-J27 Widening Winter 2008 7.21 14.42 
			 M25 J16-23 Widening Winter 2009 22.12 40.39 
			 A453 Widening (M1 J24 to A52 Nottingham) Winter 2009 7.15 14.29 
			 M1 J39-J42 Widening Spring 2009 6.59 11.19 
			 M62 J27-J28 Summer 2009 3.29 6.59 
			 A14 Ellington-Fen Ditton Improvement Spring 2010 22.56 121.36 
			 M1 J21-J30 Widening (Phase 2) Spring 2010 37.84 72.64 
			 A21 Tonbridge to Pembury Spring 2010 2.55 10.19 
			 M25 J27-J30 Widening Summer 2010 14.04 26.22 
			 M1 J34-J37 Widening Winter 2011 10.00 20.01 
			 A47 Blofield to North Burlingham Dualling Spring 2011 2.49 4.97 
			 A23 Handcross to Warninglid Widening Spring 2011 2.36 4.72 
			 M1 J32-J34 Widening Spring 2011 7.39 10.75 
			 A21 Kippings Cross to Lamberhurst Bypass Spring 2011 2.98 11.81 
			 M1 J30-J31 Widening Summer 2011 5.90 11.81 
			 A46 Newark-Widmerpool Improvement Spring 2012 17.09 43.50 
			 M25 J5-J7 Widening Autumn 2012 22.12 40.39 
			 M25 J23-J27 Widening Autumn 2012 17.34 30.70 
			 M1 J37-J39 Widening Autumn 2012 7.89 12.80 
			 A57/A628 Mottram in Longdendale, Hollingworth and Tintwistle Bypass Spring 2013 3.98 12.74 
			 A11 Fiveways-Thetford Improvement Spring 2013 9.20 18.77 
			 M1 J31-J32 Widening Summer 2014 3.54 11.06 
			 A505 Dunstable Northern Bypass (A5 to M1 Link) 2013-14 2.73 10.94 
			 Total number of miles of new road and Motorway  317.71 748.76

Sheppey Crossing

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times the Sheppey crossing has been closed since it was opened in July 2006.

Stephen Ladyman: The A249 Sheppey Crossing has been formally closed three times since it opened in July 2006.
	In addition, on 19 December 2006 the northbound carriageway only was closed for a short period to remove a broken down lorry.
	The old Kingsferry lifting bridge next to the new bridge remains open and has been used as an alternative route when the Sheppey Crossing has been closed.

Variable Speed Indicators

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average time was between a request for variable speed indicators and decision by the Secretary of State in the latest period for which figures are available.

Stephen Ladyman: Local traffic authorities may introduce variable speed limit signs on their roads without consent from the Secretary of State, providing those signs conform with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002 and the relevant speed limit orders are in place. Local traffic authorities need to seek consent to introduce signs only if they do not conform to these regulations.
	Applications for consent must provide supporting information as set out in the relevant regulations. Subject to that information being received, the Department would expect to reach a decision within five working days.

Variable Speed Indicators

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date his Department received the formal request by Essex county council for activation of variable speed indicators near Mountnessing primary school in Brentwood and Ongar; and on what date he approved their activation.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department initially received a formal request from Essex county council on 15 December 2005. The Department found it necessary to seek further information concerning the statutory consultation procedure before considering the application.
	It is understood that this information was sent to the Department on 3 August 2006. It was not, however, received. It was not until 16 January 2007 that the Department was made aware that Essex county council had submitted this information and was still waiting for a response. The Department received a further set of the documents on 17 January 2007, and duly gave its consent on 18 January 2007.

Variable Speed Indicators

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many requests for variable speed indicators were received in each of the last three years.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department received no applications from local traffic authorities for non-prescribed variable speed limit signs in 2004 and 2005 and seven applications in 2006. No applications have, as yet, been received in 2007.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Fixed Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland which fixed assets his Department sold for more than £10,000 in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06; and what the (i) sale value, (ii) purchaser and (iii) date of sale was of each asset.

David Cairns: The Scotland Office did not sell any fixed assets with a value of more than £10,000 in 2004-05 or 2005-06.

Public Sector Pensions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the cash equivalent transfer value is of the public sector pensions of the 10 highest paid members of staff in his Department and its executive agencies; and if he will make a statement.

David Cairns: The staff in the Scotland Office are on loan from the Department for Constitutional Affairs or the Scottish Executive and the Office does not hold this information.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

BBC

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the revenue from the BBC licence was in each of the last 10 years; and how much of the increase in revenue is accounted for by an increase in the number of licence payers.

Shaun Woodward: According to the BBC's annual reports, the BBC's licence fee revenue and number of licences in force in each of the last 10 years are given in the following table. The number of licences in force includes free licences issued to households in which one or more persons are over the age of 75. The BBC is reimbursed for these free licences by the Government.
	Figures on the proportion of yearly revenue attributable to an increase in the number of licences are not collected. However, PKF, in their "Review of the BBC Value for Money and Efficiency Programmes" published in April 2006, estimate that over the period of the last licence fee settlement (2000-01 to 2006-07) a total of £632 million of licence fee income was attributable to household growth (HHG).
	
		
			   Licence fee income (£ million)  Licences in force (million) 
			 2006 3,100.6 25 
			 2005 2,940.3 24.7 
			 2004 2,798.1 24.5 
			 2003 2,658.5 24.1 
			 2002 2,533.0 23.8 
			 2001 2,370.8 23.4 
			 2000 2,285.5 23.3 
			 1999 2,179.5 22.8 
			 1998 2,009.7 22.3 
			 1997 1,915.2 22

Carbon Emissions

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when her Department began to measure its carbon emissions; what the volume of those emissions was in the last period for which figures are available; when her Department started to offset those emissions; what the cost is expected to be of offsetting her Department's emissions in 2006-07; and if she will make a statement.

David Lammy: The Department fist measured its carbon emissions for energy in 1999-2000 and transport in 2004-05. In 2005-06 the Department's emissions for energy and transport totalled 800,775 kilograms of carbon. The Department is currently supplied with 100 per cent. renewable energy. DCMS policy is to encourage its bodies to give sustainable development a high priority. The Department is developing a carbon culture scheme to promote energy efficiency and carbon trading across DCMS and its sponsored bodies.

Digital Switchover

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the compatibility of the targeted help scheme for digital switchover with the Disability Discrimination Act 2005.

Shaun Woodward: The digital switchover help scheme has been specifically designed to help elderly people and those with disabilities make the switch to digital television. It is compatible with the Disability Discrimination Act 2005. We intend to conduct an equality impact assessment shortly.

Gambling

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with gambling and gaming companies on on-line gambling addiction.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 24 January 2007
	The Department has held a number of discussions with representatives of gambling and gaming companies during and since the passage of the Gambling Act 2005. Topics have included: ways to tackle problem gambling; implementing social responsibility measures such as age verification; our international summit on remote gambling; and research into gambling addiction.

Lottery Funding

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was allocated to Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency by the Heritage Lottery Fund in each of the last five years.

David Lammy: In the last five financial years the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has allocated the following funding in the Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.
	
		
			  Financial year  Allocation (£) 
			 2001-02 1,630 
			 2002-03 12,980 
			 2003-04 910,830 
			 2004-05 39,043 
			 2005-06 78,261 
			 Total 1,042,744

Ofcom

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when Ministers in her Department last met the chief executive of Ofcom.

Shaun Woodward: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I last met the chief executive of Ofcom on 22 November 2006.

Ofcom

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport about which five television programmes Ofcom received most complaints in  (a) 2005 and (b) 2006.

Shaun Woodward: The matters raised are the responsibility of the Office of Communications (Ofcom) as independent regulator. Accordingly, my officials have asked the Chief Executive of Ofcom to respond directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the Chief Executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Ofcom

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what basis Ofcom is refusing to respond to individual complaints made about Celebrity Big Brother.

Shaun Woodward: The matters raised are the responsibility of the Office of Communications (Ofcom) as independent regulator. Accordingly, my officials have asked the Chief Executive of Ofcom to respond directly to my hon. Friend. Copies of the Chief Executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Overseas Visits

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what overseas visits Ministers in her Department have made in an official capacity in the last 12 months; and what engagements were undertaken during the visits.

Tessa Jowell: I am arranging for a list of those overseas visits undertaken by DCMS Ministers in an official capacity in the last 12 months to be placed in the Library of the House.
	All travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the ministerial code and "Travel by Ministers".

Radio Microphones

Brian Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans the Government have for the selling of the frequency allocation used by radio microphone users.

Shaun Woodward: The matter raised is the responsibility of the Office of Communications (Ofcom), as independent regulator for the communications sector. Accordingly, I have asked the Chief Executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the Chief Executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Religious Broadcasting

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with  (a) the Church of England,  (b) the Roman Catholic Church and  (c) representatives of non-conformist churches on the decision to allow evangelists to raise money through broadcasting activities.

Shaun Woodward: None. This decision was a matter for the independent regulator, Ofcom, and I understand that they held discussions with representatives of all these churches and other interested parties.

TV Licences

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the cost of the administration of  (a) issuing and  (b) collecting payment for television licences in the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: The BBC is responsible for the administration of the TV licensing system and for the collection of licence fee revenue. The corporation has said that the breakdown of costs requested is not available. Total collection costs in 2005-06 were £153.4 million, according to the BBC's annual report and accounts.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the Leader of the House how much his Office paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: The information is set out in the following table. Data for financial years 1997-98 to 2000-01 is not held electronically and only available at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Financial year  Cost (£) 
			 2001-02 32,037.49 
			 2002-03 0 
			 2003-04 9,717.84 
			 2004-05 2,665.51 
			 2005-06 339.54 
			 2006-07 (year to date) 0

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Careers Advice

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what percentage of children aged  (a) 13,  (b) 14,  (c) 15,  (d) 16 and  (e) 17 years received careers advice at school in the last period for which figures are available.

Beverley Hughes: Careers advice falls under the wider information advice and guidance (IAG) remit of the Connexions Service. Information on Connexions' interventions with young people is collected centrally, but we do not collect information specifically relating to careers advice given in schools.

E-learning Credits

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance he has issued to schools on the appropriate use of e-learning credits.

Jim Knight: The DfES provides schools with detailed guidance on the use of e-learning credits (eLCs).
	This guidance is highlighted as part of the general funding circular to schools and displayed on the Curriculum Online website:
	http://www.curriculumonline.gov.uk/Helpdesk/Helpdesk+page.htm#tobuy

E-learning Credits

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether his Department has approved for purchase with e-learning credits technologies which would facilitate the collection of biometric data.

Jim Knight: holding answer 22 January 2007
	The Department does not collect this specific information but only products to support the teaching of the national curriculum in England are eligible for e-learning credits (eLCs).
	The DfES publishes guidelines which cover the criteria against which software products will be judged to be eligible for certification and inclusion in the Curriculum Online catalogue, and therefore eligible for eLCs.
	The guidelines are at:
	http://www.curriculumonline.gov.uk/SupplierCentre/compliance.htm

E-learning Credits

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what types of systems and software his Department has approved for purchase with e-learning credits.

Jim Knight: holding answer 22 January 2007
	The DfES publishes guidelines which cover the criteria against which software products will be judged to be eligible for certification and inclusion in the Curriculum Online catalogue, and therefore eligible for e-learning credits. The guidelines are at:
	http://www.curriculumonline.gov.uk/SupplierCentre/compliance.htm

Specialised Diplomas

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps are being taken to assess the training needs of school and college staff before the introduction of specialised diplomas.

Phil Hope: As part of the Diploma Gateway process, each consortia applying to deliver the diplomas completed an assessment of their requirements in terms of development for current staff and recruitment. Successful consortiums will have assessed the skills and training needs of their staff.
	In addition, the Department is putting in place a support package that will provide the workforce with the tools to assess current skills. The Centre for Excellence in Leadership and the National College for School Leadership are leading a project to support leaders and managers in developing the skills necessary to implement the diplomas, including assessing and managing training needs. Additionally the Training and Development Agency for Schools and Lifelong Learning UK are producing a professional development toolkit for teachers. This will look at the specific skills and knowledge needed to teach the diplomas and use the existing teaching standards frameworks to make recommendations about development priorities.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Business Rates

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the net yield from business rates was in England in each year since 1996-97; and what it is expected to be in 2006-07.

Phil Woolas: The figures requested are in the following table.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Net rate yields 
			   Local lists  Central list  CILOR( 1)  Total 
			 1996-97 10,659 1,221 487 12,366 
			 1997-98 11,617 1,207 469 13,293 
			 1998-99 11,919 1,273 440 13,632 
			 1999-2000 12,383 1,319 332 14,034 
			 2000-01 13,698 868 9 14,575 
			 2001-02 14,778 1,048 12 15,838 
			 2002-03 14,478 1,044 8 15,530 
			 2003-04 14,384 1,029 10 15,423 
			 2004-05 14,739 1,030 10 15,779 
			 2005-06(2) 15,679 1,097 11 16,786 
			 2006-07(2) 17,172 1,000 10 18,182 
			 (1) Contribution in lieu of rates for crown properties. Most crown properties transferred to local lists with effect from 2000-01. (2) Estimates.  Source:  NNDR returns; central government information on central and crown lists.

Consultants

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which external consultancy  (a) firms and  (b) organisations her Department has commissioned (i) to conduct research and (ii) to provide advice in relation to (A) council tax and (B) home information packs since 2002.

Phil Woolas: Since 2002 my Department or its predecessors has commissioned no external firms or organisations to conduct research or to provide advice specifically on council tax. Research for the balance of funding review did, however, touch on council tax within a wider consideration of the financing of local government. The research commissioned may be found on my Department's website at:
	http://www.local.odpm.gov.uk/finance/balance/rsg.htm
	The research is as follows:
	University of Cardiff—International lessons on the balance of funding
	NOP World—Deliberative public focus groups on the balance of funding
	University of Plymouth—Relationship between the balance of funding and voter turnout in local government elections.
	The home information pack programme is bringing about major changes to the multi-billion pound home buying and selling industry to the benefit of consumers and the environment. The work has included developing and testing the home condition report and the energy performance certificate; putting in place a quality assurance framework to protect consumers and guarantee standards; developing the necessary systems and explaining the changes to the public and industry stakeholders. This has required a wide range of technical and professional expertise to implement that the Department either does not have or does not have in sufficient quantity.
	For details of the organisations and firms employed, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 8 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 1568-89W.

Council Tax

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance has been given to local authorities about whether residents may pay for their yearly council tax bill in 10 or 12 instalments.

Phil Woolas: "The Council Tax: Practice Note 5" originally issued to local authorities by the Department of the Environment in 1992 and re-issued on 29 April 1994, makes clear that authorities may agree council tax payment arrangements with taxpayers that differ from the normal statutory minimum, often monthly, instalments. "Council Tax—a guide to your bill" published by this Department makes clear that local authorities may agree, although usually only in exceptional circumstances, to payment of council tax bills over 12 rather than 10 months.

Departmental Expenditure

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department spent in each of the Government office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: Chapter 7 of the annual Treasury publication "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses" details expenditure on services in the regions and countries of the United Kingdom.
	Identifiable spending in each region of England for 2004-05 (latest available data) is contained within table 7.19 of the 2006 edition of PESA. Data relating to spending which is now the responsibility of the Department for Communities and Local Government are shown under the heading of the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
	The 2006 edition of PESA is available at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic_data_and_tools/finance_spending_statistics/pes_publications/pespub_pesa06.cfm

Departmental Fixed Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which fixed assets her Department sold for more than £10,000 in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06; and what the (i) sale value, (ii) purchaser and (iii) date of sale was of each asset.

Angela Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government's predecessor department, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, sold no fixed assets for more than £10,000 in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06.

European Year of Equal Opportunities

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps the Government are taking to support the European Year of Equal Opportunities; what activities her Department has organised to celebrate the European Year of Equal Opportunities; what funding the Government are providing for events organised as part of the European Year of Equal Opportunities; and which Ministers will be attending the Equality Summit being held by the European Parliament as part of the European Year of Equal Opportunities.

Phil Woolas: The Government will organise a series of events around the country to promote the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All. In order to maximise the impact and sustainability of these events, the Government's intention is to link this work as far as possible to the launch of the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights, which is scheduled for October of this year. The overall budget and the final plans for the year will depend on the level of co-financing from the European Commission, which is expected to be around £450,000. The Government intend to contribute a similar amount. Confirmation of the level of the European Commission's contribution is expected in March. Activities in the UK to promote the year should start in April. My hon. Friend the Minister for Women and Equality intends to attend the Equality Summit being held by the German presidency of the EU in Berlin on 30 to 31 January.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent by each of her Department's Executive agencies in each of the Government office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: This information is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which of the Executive agencies of her Department have regional offices outside London.

Angela Smith: The three Executive agencies sponsored by Communities and Local Government are the Fire Service College, the Planning Inspectorate and the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre.
	The Fire Service College is located at Moreton in Marsh in Gloucestershire.
	The Planning Inspectorate's headquarters is in Bristol. It is also an Executive agency of the National Assembly for Wales and has an office in Cardiff.
	The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre is located in Westminster.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which Executive agencies are the responsibility of her Department; what the function is of each agency; and what the budget was of each agency in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: Information on the Executive agencies sponsored by the Department for Communities and Local Government can be found in their annual reports and accounts, copies of which are in the Library and which are also online as follows:
	 Fire Service College
	http://www.fireservicecollege.ac.uk/About+Us/Reports+and+Plans/Annual+Report/
	 Planning Inspectorate
	http://www.planning-inspectorate.gov.uk/pins/reports/ann_report_05_06/contents.htm
	 Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre
	http://www.qeiicc.co.uk/corporate_info/documentation

Government Office for London

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget was of the Government Office for London in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2006, broken down by Department.

Angela Smith: We do not hold administration budget information on Government Office for London broken down by Department for 1997-98. The overall administration budget for GOL in 1997-98 was £13,458,820. The current budget for 2006-07 is £17,955,700. This is broken down as follows:
	
		
			  Department  Budget (£000) 
			 CLG 7,735.07 
			 DfT 1,055.10 
			 DTI 2,280.47 
			 DfES 1,711.37 
			 DWP 701.10 
			 DEFRA 429.86 
			 DCMS 64.03 
			 Home Office 2,523.99 
			 Other (including tariffs and non cash) 1,454.76

Government Offices for the Regions

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which Government Departments contribute to the programme expenditure of each of the Government Offices for the Regions (GOR); and how much each Government Department provided to each GOR in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: The following Departments contribute towards the programme expenditure of each Government Office: DEFRA, DfES, Home Office, DTI, Communities and Local Government, DWP and DfT.
	The Department for Communities and Local Government's delegated programme expenditure for 2006-07 for each GO was estimated as follows:
	
		
			  Government Office  Programme expenditure (£) 
			 East 27,515,000 
			 East Midlands 58,521,000 
			 North East 91,453,000 
			 North West 311,832,000 
			 South East 38,106,000 
			 South West 105,610,000 
			 West Midlands 119,698,000 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 238,687,000 
			 London 139,652,000 
			 Total 1,131,074,000 
		
	
	The Department for Communities and Local Government does not centrally hold programme expenditure data for the other sponsor Departments to the nine Government Offices.

High Hedge Disputes

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department has made of the charges levied by individual local planning authorities for high hedge dispute applications.

Meg Munn: The Department for Communities and Local Government has made no formal evaluation of the level or impact of fees levied by local authorities under Part 8 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 to deal with complaints about high hedges. Information on these fees is not collected centrally. Our advice in "High Hedges Complaints: Prevention and Cure" indicates that each local authority is responsible for deciding whether, and at what level, to charge for dealing with complaints about high hedges.
	We will carry out a review of this part of the 2003 Act in 2010 after it has been in operation for five years. We are aware that authorities are keeping their fees for this service under review.

Local Government

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many councils in England operate the  (a) leader and cabinet,  (b) mayor and cabinet,  (c) mayor and manager and  (d) streamlined committee systems of decision-making; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The number of councils operating each governance model is as follows:
	 (a) Leader and cabinet—318
	 (b) Mayor and cabinet—11
	 (c) Mayor and council manager—1
	 (d) Alternative arrangements (streamlined committee system)—56

Local Government

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of local authorities in England elect councillors  (a) by thirds and  (b) all-out.

Phil Woolas: Of the 388 principal local authorities in England, 35 per cent. (all 36 metropolitan district councils and 98 shire district councils) elect by thirds; 2 per cent. (seven shire district councils) elect by halves; and 63 per cent. (all 32 London boroughs and the City of London, all 35 county councils and 179 shire district councils and the Isles of Scilly) hold whole council elections.

Local Government

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of local authorities electing councillors by thirds have expressed a wish to move to all-out elections.

Phil Woolas: Following the Electoral Commission's report "The cycle of local government elections in England" which, after consultation with stakeholders, recommended a move to all-out elections for all local authorities in England, we have received inquiries about changing electoral cycles from 21 per cent. of shire district councils that currently elect by thirds. To date, three of those local authorities have made a formal request to amend their cycle. The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill provides that, in future, all councils, including metropolitan district councils that are currently barred from whole council elections, which elect by thirds can, by council resolution, move to whole council elections.

Local Government Finance

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects  (a) to receive,  (b) to publish and  (c) to respond to the report of the Lyons Inquiry into local government finance.

Phil Woolas: Sir Michael Lyons's report will be published around the time of Budget 2007. His work will inform the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007. Decisions on the Government's response will be taken in light of the report.

Local Government Finance

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 4 December 2006,  Official Report, column 170W, on council tax, what information on  (a) town and  (b) parish council tax precepts her Department collects for the collation of the yearly council tax datasets published by her Department each March;
	(2)  how many  (a) parish and  (b) town councils levy a precept on council tax in England.

Phil Woolas: The Department collects, from each billing authority and for each financial year, the figure for the aggregate amount of any precepts issued by local precepting authorities, or anticipated by the billing authority. Local precepting authorities comprise parish and town councils and similar bodies, such as parish meetings and charter trustees.

Local Government Restructuring

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether a referendum is required  (a) to ratify and  (b) to approve a move to unitary local government from a two-tier structure.

Phil Woolas: A referendum will not be required to ratify or approve a move to unitary local government.

Local Taxation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department is assessing the implications of the introduction of the discrete capital values system of local taxation and the conduct of the rates revaluation in Northern Ireland for policy making in England.

Phil Woolas: No.

Neighbourhood Renewal Fund

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will break down by main budget heading the programme expenditure for the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund initiative in the  (a) North West,  (b) London,  (c) East Midlands,  (d) Eastern,  (e) Yorkshire and Humberside,  (f) West Midlands,  (g) South West and  (h) North East region in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The Neighbourhood Renewal Fund (NRF) is a special unhypothecated grant paid to the 86 most deprived areas in England. NRF can be used in any way a locality wishes—as long as its use is agreed through their Local Strategic Partnership and contributes to the achievement of neighbourhood renewal outcomes in line with a local neighbourhood renewal strategy.
	NRF programme expenditure in the current financial year (2006-07) for the eight(1) English regions listed is set out in the following table.
	(1) The ninth region (South East) has a 2006-07 NRF allocation of £3.376 million.
	
		
			  Region  £ million 
			 North West 143.005 
			 London 119.000 
			 East Midlands 30.977 
			 East of England 3.896 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 78.987 
			 West Midlands 70.017 
			 South West 10.596 
			 North East 65.145

New Deal

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will break down by main budget heading the programme expenditure for the New Deal for Communities initiative in the  (a) Eastern,  (b) east Midlands,  (c) London,  (d) north-east,  (e) north-west and (f) south-east regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The 39 NDC neighbourhoods will be allocated £2 billion over 10 years (average of £52 million each). The breakdown for capital/resource expenditure for the regions specified is as follows for financial year 2005-06:
	
		
			  New Deal for Communities expenditure 2005-06 
			£000 
			  Region  Number of NDCs  Resource spend  Capital spend  Total spend 
			 Eastern 2 7,141.45 3,290.33 10,431.78 
			 East midlands 3 11,206.92 4,926.85 16,133.76 
			 London 10 38,952.60 33,238.33 72,190.92 
			 North-east 4 20,953.08 10,682.98 31,636.06 
			 North-west 6 21,517.63 13,982.37 35,500.00 
			 South-east 2 7,949.99 5,222.13 13,172.12

Non-departmental Public Bodies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which non-departmental public bodies are sponsored by her Department; what the function is of each body; and what the budget was for each body in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: Details of the remit, Government funding and gross expenditure of public bodies sponsored by the Department for Communities and Local Government can be found in the Cabinet Office publication "Public Bodies 2006", copies of which are in the Library and which is also available online at:
	http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/other/agencies/publications/pdf/public-bodies/publicbodies2006.pdf
	In addition to those bodies listed in the 2006 edition under the Department for Communities and Local Government, this Department is now also responsible for the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Women's National Commission, listed under the Department for Trade and Industry; and the Commission for Racial Equality and the Community Development Foundation listed under the Home Office.
	The National Housing and Planning Advice Unit is a new Advisory NDPB and does not appear in Public Bodies 2006. It has been set up to provide independent advice and strengthen the evidence and analysis on improving housing market affordability available to the regional planning bodies throughout the planning process. Its budget for 2006-07 is £1.5 million. It is expected to be fully operational from March 2007.

ODPM Travel

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's expenditure on foreign travel, including accommodation, was in 2005-06.

Angela Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Shipley (Philip Davies) on 16 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1459W.

Pension Contributions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the employee contribution rate is to  (a) the Local Government Pension Scheme and  (b) the Firefighters' Pension Scheme; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The current contribution rate for employees in the Local Government Pension Scheme is 6 per cent. of pensionable pay, with certain members retaining rights to contribute 5 per cent. Draft regulations issued on 22 December 2006 for consultation with scheme interests in England and Wales propose new arrangements, to take effect from 1 April 2008, which would mean members contributing 5.5 per cent. payable on the first £12,000 of pensionable pay and 7.5 per cent. payable on the excess. Final decisions on new contribution levels, linked to pay, will be taken once the responses to the consultation exercise have been considered.
	Members of the Firefighters' Pension Scheme 1992 pay a contribution of 11 per cent. of pensionable pay. This scheme has been closed. From 6 April 2006, firefighters joining the fire and rescue service are members of the New Firefighters' Pension Scheme 2006 and pay a contribution of 8.5 per cent. of pensionable pay.

Peterborough City Council

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much she has allocated to Peterborough city council for the future funding of environmental wardens; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Peterborough city council has not been allocated any future funding specifically for environmental wardens.
	However, Peterborough city council receives Safer and Stronger Communities funding as part of its local area agreement. It is a local decision as to how this funding is allocated.
	Peterborough receives additional funding as part of its Safer and Stronger Communities funding for the Greater Dogsthorpe area. This neighbourhood element funding is worth £13,000 for 2006-07. The area will receive £516,000, plus a top-up for this year only of £65,000 for 2007-08. A further two years of funding is dependent upon the 2007 spending review.
	I understand that the Greater Dogsthorpe Partnership, which includes residents and local councillors, is using part of this funding to employ an environmental enforcement officer. This officer will also work with volunteer resident "street leaders" from the area to help champion local streets and neighbourhoods and help tackle environmental issues.

Planning and Local Government Finance

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many reviews of  (a) planning policy and  (b) local government finance the Government have conducted or commissioned since May 1997.

Yvette Cooper: The information is as follows:
	 (a) Three overall reviews. But in addition a large number of individual policy areas have been updated or changed since 1997.
	 (b) Three. In addition, the Government, in consultation with stakeholders, have reviewed the distribution of formula grant to local authorities a number of times since 1997. Changes were introduced to the grant formulae in 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2003-04 and 2006-07.

Rats

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have engaged in sewer-baiting to curtail the rat population.

Phil Woolas: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Safer Stronger Communities Fund

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will break down by main budget heading programme expenditure by the Safer Stronger Communities Fund initiative in the Yorkshire and Humberside region in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: In 2006-07 the funding allocated to the Safer and Stronger Communities Fund (SSCF) in the Yorkshire and Humberside region was £6,078,363.
	£2,177,624 of the total was allocated for the "stronger" element, £2,930,739 for the "safer" element and £970,000 for the Cleaner Greener Safer programme.
	Of the total allocated to the SSCF £4,514,117 is revenue funding and £1,564,246 is capital funds.
	This funding was allocated to the areas in Yorkshire and Humberside that do not currently have a local area agreement in place; other similar funds are allocated under the local area agreement arrangements in the Safer Stronger Communities block.

Social Care Funding

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the priority given to the level of social care funding in the forthcoming comprehensive spending review; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government's funding of social care is being reviewed alongside all other aspects of Government expenditure in accordance with the process described in the statement set before the House on 19 July 2005. Paragraph 6.11 of the 2006 pre-Budget report (Cm 6984) provides more information on this specific area of work. The conclusions of the review will be published in the comprehensive spending review White Paper.

Special Advisers: Travel

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the  (a) destination and  (b) total cost was of each visit abroad by a special adviser in her Department in an official capacity since the creation of her Department.

Angela Smith: All travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code. No special adviser in the Department for Communities and Local Government has been on a visit abroad in an official capacity since the creation of the Department.

Sustainable Communities Plan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of the  (a) recommendations and  (b) targets in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's 2003 Sustainable Communities Plan (i) have yet to be met and (ii) are no longer being pursued.

Yvette Cooper: The Sustainable Communities Plan set out a long-term programme of activity designed to achieve a step change in our policies for delivering sustainable communities for all by increasing housing supply, housing market renewal, providing more decent and affordable homes for all, ensuring the right infrastructure is provided, delivering on new growth areas and improving the countryside and local environment.
	We have made considerable progress and are going further still to meet the challenges outlined in the plan. For example:
	We have reduced the number of non-decent social homes by more than 1 million, and increased the proportion of vulnerable households in the private sector who have a decent home by 66 per cent. In total over £20 billion of public money has been invested in improving council housing since 1997, and over £40 billion in total will have been invested by the end of 2010.
	Across the country, we are more than doubling investment in affordable housing through the Housing Corporation to £2 billion per year by 2008. By 2010 we will have helped 120,000 households into low cost home ownership through our Homebuy scheme and over 160,000 households to access home ownership through private or public shared equity schemes.
	Combined with London, the four growth areas and the 29 new growth points have the potential to deliver an extra 300,000 homes above previously planned levels by 2016.
	Around £400 million is to be allocated by 2008 (since 2003-04) from the Communities and Local Government's Growth Area Fund (GAF) to support the objectives of sustainable development in the three newer growth areas and we are providing £40 million in 2007-08 for a first round of infrastructure projects and to support growth-related studies, masterplanning and capacity-building in the new growth points.
	Since 2003 we have allocated £850 million to accelerate the growth of the Thames Gateway. Most of these funds are committed.
	Kate Barker, in her Review of Housing Supply (published in 2004), concluded that the housing market had not responded sufficiently to meet the needs of the country's ageing and growing population and recommended a step change in housing supply. In its response, published in December 2005, the Government set out an ambition to increase the supply of new homes to 200,000 per year by 2016. Alongside the Barker response, the Government announced a cross-cutting review of funding for infrastructure to support housing growth, and stronger measures for environmental sustainability. In December 2006 we further enhanced our commitment to protecting and enhancing the environment and tackling climate change by introducing a number of new environmental initiatives such as the Code for Sustainable Homes and PPS on climate change that aim to deliver more sustainable development.
	This work continues and the Department for Communities and Local Government is tasked with delivering prosperous and cohesive communities, offering a safe, healthy and sustainable environment for all.

Sustainable Communities Plan

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of the  (a) recommendations and  (b) targets in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's (i) Five Year Plan—Homes For All and (ii) Five Year Plan—people, places and prosperity (A) have yet to be met and (B) are no longer being pursued.

Yvette Cooper: Details of the Department's achievements, including action to take forward the proposals set out in the Five Year Plans of the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, are set out in the 2006 annual report (Cm 6816). Copies are available in the Library of the House.

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings the Valuation Office Agency has had with representatives of the Hong Kong Government's Rating Valuation Department in relation to best practice, new technology and methodologies used in the valuation of domestic properties.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 16 January 2007
	None.

DEFENCE

A400M

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects A400M tactical airlift aircraft to be introduced into service.

Adam Ingram: The in-service date of the A400M is 2011.

Active Duty

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces are serving abroad on active duty, including reserve forces; and what their average length of duty overseas is.

Adam Ingram: Location statistics may be compiled based on posted (stationed) location or deployed location. Posted (stationed) location is where an individual is permanently based. Deployed location is where an individual is physically located at a particular point in time and is typically used for short tours of active duty.
	Deployment figures are provided at high levels based on manual returns and include reserve forces. At 1 January 2007,13,660 personnel were deployed on operations abroad.
	The strength of UK regular forces posted outside the UK is available in Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 6—"Global Location of UK Regular Forces". TSP 6 does not include reserve forces.
	TSP 6 is published quarterly; the most recent publication show the numbers of service personnel at 1 October 2006.
	Copies of TSP 6 are available in the Library of the House and at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tsp6/tsp6_oct06.pdf.
	The average length of duty of personnel on active duty overseas is not held centrally. However, operational tours of duty are generally between four and six months.

Armed Forces

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 11 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 907-8W, on the armed forces, what criminal offences were involved, and which cases were dealt with in  (a) magistrates courts and  (b) county courts.

Adam Ingram: The breakdown of information sought is not readily available in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, I attach a breakdown of offences by category since 2001. As individuals may be charged with more than one offence the total numbers in each year do not correspond with those in my answer of 11 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 970-8W, which relate to individuals not offences.
	
		
			  Category  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Criminal damage 3 3 12 5 9 3 
			 Assault 19 16 34 43 32 8 
			 Theft 4 9 12 5 2 5 
			 Sexual offences 1 1 2 3 3 1 
			 Driving offences 258 302 371 359 218 96 
			 Disorderly behaviour/public order 13 7 45 34 31 14 
			 Drug offences — — — 3 — — 
			 Murder 1 — — — — —

Armed Forces

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for further armed forces recruitment drives aimed at the Muslim community.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 22 January 2007
	The armed forces strive to engage ethnic minority groups, including those in the Muslim community, to raise awareness of armed forces' careers and to improve representation of the Muslim community in the ranks. Within this effort the services undertake a wide variety of outreach initiatives specifically aimed at encouraging more young people from the Muslim community to consider a career in the armed forces. These activities are undertaken at local level by dedicated recruitment teams or by service establishments based in or near the community. Examples include:
	On 20 January, the Royal Navy's (RN) Diversity Action Team invited a group of young people from the Small Heath area of Birmingham to take part in an RN Introduction Day. The Team has been working with a sub branch of the UK Islamic Mission called the Urban Development Foundation as part of a five month ethnic minority recruiting drive focusing on the Small Heath and Handsworth area of the city.
	The Army's participation in Eid celebrations in Bradford and Nottingham and a visit to an East London Muslim community and Mosque.
	The RAF's work with the Pakistani community in Leeds.
	The armed forces have for the past three years sponsored an award at the annual Muslim News Awards and will again sponsor this year's awards.
	On 16 January 2007, the Chief of the Defence staff met Dr. Abdul Bari, the Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) to discuss a series of issues relating to Muslims in the armed forces. In that same week the Second Sea Lord hosted members of the MCB and the editor of  The Muslim Weekly on a visit to Plymouth.

Armed Forces

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers from Northern Ireland are serving in  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq.

Adam Ingram: Data on the residential location of armed forces personnel is not held centrally in databases of individual records and it is therefore not possible to give figures by place of residence.
	Location statistics may be compiled based on posted location or deployed location. Posted location is where an individual is permanently based. Deployed location is where an individual is physically located at a particular point in time and is typically used for short tours of duty. Deployment data are not centrally held.
	The number of regular armed forces personnel posted to Afghanistan is available in Tri Service Publication 6, "Global Location of UK Regular Forces" (TSP 6). Copies are available in the House of Commons Library and are also at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk.

Armed Forces

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expected expenditure on pay is for all army  (a) officers and  (b) other ranks in 2006-07.

Derek Twigg: The total expenditure, to the end of November 2006, on army pay for officers was £471 million and other ranks £1,563 million. We expect the expenditure for the remainder of the financial year to be consistent with the costs incurred to date.

Armed Forces

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2006,  Official Report, column 605W, on army recruitment, what the outflow was from the Regular Army for each of the last 12 months broken down by  (a) rank of officer and  (b) other ranks.

Derek Twigg: The following tables show the outflow to civil life of trained and untrained Regular Army officers and other ranks by rank for each of the last 12 months:
	
		
			  Officers 
			  During  Major General and above  Brigadier  Colonel ( 1) Lieutenant Colonel  Major  Captain ( 2) Lieutenant  Officer Designate  Total 
			 November 2005 — — — 10 30 10 — 10 70 
			 December 2005 — — 10 10 20 30 10 — 70 
			 January 2006 — — 10 10 30 20 — 20 90 
			 February 2006 — — — 10 20 20 — — 60 
			 March 2006 — — 10 10 10 20 — 10 60 
			 April 2006 — — — 20 40 50 — 30 160 
			 May 2006 — — — 10 30 40 — — 80 
			 June 2006 — — 10 20 80 30 10 10 160 
			 July 2006 — — — 10 40 40 — 20 110 
			 August 2006 — — — 10 40 40 10 20 120 
			 September 2006 — — 10 20 40 40 20 10 130 
			 October 2006 — — — 20 40 30 10 — 100 
			 Total 10 20 50 160 410 380 70 120 1,220 
			 (1 )Includes Lieutenant Colonel and Lieutenant Colonel Special List (2) Includes Lieutenant and 2nd Lieutenant "—" represents zero or rounded to zero. 
		
	
	
		
			  Soldiers 
			  During  Warrant Officer Class 1  Warrant Officer Class 2  Staff Sergeant  Sergeant  Corporal  Lance Corporal  Private  Total 
			 November 2005 20 50 60 60 110 140 620 1,060 
			 December 2005 20 60 40 40 70 110 550 880 
			 January 2006 40 60 70 80 140 160 650 1,200 
			 February 2006 20 50 50 70 120 150 660 1,130 
			 March 2006 20 60 50 80 110 130 600 1,050 
			 April 2006 40 60 60 <>0 110 140 680 1,160 
			 May 2006 20 60 40 60 110 130 720 1,150 
			 June 2006 30 50 40 60 100 160 730 1,170 
			 July 2006 40 50 60 60 110 120 660 1,100 
			 August 2006 30 50 60 70 100 150 650 1,120 
			 September 2006 40 40 50 70 100 160 650 1,110 
			 October 2006 30 50 40 60 110 120 820 1,230 
			 Total 340 650 620 780 1,290 1,680 7,990 13,350 
			  Notes: Figures show all outflow from UK Regular Army Forces to Civil Life including recalled reservists on release and outflow to the Home Service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment. The figures exclude outflow of Illegal Absentees i.e. those personnel removed from the reported strength of the Army having been deemed long-term illegally absent. Therefore these figures will differ slightly from those published in some official statistics i.e. Tri Service Publication 1. UK Regular Forces includes Nursing services and excludes Full Time Reserve Service personnel, Gurkhas, the Home Service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment and mobilised reservists. It includes trained and untrained personnel. All data have been rounded to the nearest 10. Due to the rounding methods used, totals may not always equal the sum of the parts. Numbers ending in "5" have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Armoured Vehicles

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many mine-protected armoured vehicles are on order for the Army; and how many are available for deployment.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 31 October 2006,  Official Report, column 335W, to the hon. Member for Congleton (Ann Winterton). Given the small number and specialist role of these vehicles, I do not intend to give precise details on the number available for deployment for reasons of operational security.

Chorley Air Cadet Centre

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when work will commence on refurbishing the roof at Chorley Air Cadet Centre.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 24 January 2007
	The work required to repair the roof of Chorley Air Cadet Centre was carried out on 22 January 2007.

Combat Body Armour

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research his Department has undertaken to assess the impact of newly developed combat body armour on the frequency and severity of injury to combat personnel.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 22 January 2007
	The development of current and future types of body armour has been and continues to be supported by a wide range of research and analysis. This includes: biomedical research focusing on armour placement and coverage, as well as the medical treatment of casualties; the assessment of the protective properties of individual materials; and the use of war-gaming models to determine overall combat effectiveness of particular body armour designs. No specific data has been collated to determine scientifically the success of new designs in reducing injury and saving lives. Anecdotal evidence, however, points clearly to the effectiveness and popularity of these systems.

Departmental Vetting

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes he has initiated in departmental vetting requirements  (a) between September 2001 and July 2005 and  (b) since July 2005.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 23 January 2007
	Ministry of Defence vetting requirements reflect criteria laid down by Government and set out in the Prime Minister's Statement on vetting on 15 December 1994,  Official Report, columns 764-6W. Following a Cabinet Office Review of Personnel Security that concluded in May 2004, new processes for a standard approach to Developed Vetting, across government, were introduced in April 2006. A new Baseline Personnel Security Standard replacing the current Basic Check is currently being introduced.

Deployment

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) Royal Navy,  (b) Royal Marine,  (c) Army,  (d) RAF and  (e) civilian personnel in his Department are stationed abroad; and in which countries.

Derek Twigg: The information is given in the following tables:
	
		
			  Global location of UK regular forces at 1 October 2006 
			  Location  Royal Navy  Royal Marines  Army  RAF( 1) 
			 Afghanistan 100 40 (2)— (2)— 
			 Australia 20 (2)— 20 10 
			 Bahrain 20 (2)— (2)— (2)— 
			 Balkans 20 (2)— (2)— (2)— 
			 Belgium 60 10 140 150 
			 Belize (2)— (2)— 80 (2)— 
			 British Indian Ocean Territory (inc. Diego Garcia) 20 20 (2)— (2)— 
			 Brunei 10 (2)— 180 10 
			 Canada 20 (2)— 230 30 
			 Cyprus 40 (2)— 1,830 1,100 
			 Czech Republic (2)— (2)— 20 (2)— 
			 Denmark (2)— (2)— (2)— 10 
			 Falkland Islands 60 (2)— 240 40 
			 France 10 (2)— 20 10 
			 Germany 20 10 21,270 370 
			 Ghana (2)— (2)— 10 (2)— 
			 Gibraltar 200 (2)— 50 90 
			 Gulf 10 (2)— (2)— (2)— 
			 Iraq 80 30 (2)— (2)— 
			 Italy 110 10 50 80 
			 Kenya (2)— (2)— 30 (2)— 
			 Kuwait (2)— (2)— 30 10 
			 Nepal (2)— (2)— 20 (2)— 
			 Netherlands 30 10 100 90 
			 Norway 20 (2)— 10 30 
			 Oman 20 (2)— 40 20 
			 Portugal 20 (2)— 10 20 
			 Saudi Arabia 10 (2)— 10 50 
			 Sierra Leone (2)— (2)— 80 (2)— 
			 Slovakia (2)— (2)— 10 (2)— 
			 South Africa (2)— (2)— 10 (2)— 
			 Spain (2)— (2)— 10 10 
			 Turkey (2)— (2)— 10 30 
			 USA 100 10 120 180 
			 Elsewhere(3) 30 (2)— 90 40 
			 Unknown(4) (2)— (2)— 20 (2)— 
			 Grand total 1,030 180 24,760 2,420 
			 (1) Due to the introduction of a new personnel administration system for RAF, location data for 1 April 2006 are provisional and subject to review. (2) Denotes zero or rounded to zero. (3) "Elsewhere" includes all locations where five or less service personnel are stationed. (4) "Unknown" Army personnel are those known to be abroad but who are recorded against the Y List (as such, the location of these personnel cannot be determined from centrally available databases). Personnel are assigned to the Y List when they are temporarily non effective for defined reasons including terminal leave, maternity and long term detention.  Notes: 1. UK Regular Forces includes nursing services and excludes full-time reserve service personnel, Gurkhas, the Home Service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment, mobilised reservists and Naval Activated Reservists. It includes trained and untrained personnel. 2. RAF data are situated at 1 April 2006. Due to the introduction of a new personnel administration system for RAF, location data after 1 April 2006 are unavailable. 3. Location is based on the posted location of the unit/posting which an individual is recorded against. Personnel deployed on operations to an area away from their posted unit location are shown against their posted unit location. 4. Personnel in naval parties are classed as posted to the naval party and so are shown against the location of the naval party. 5. Locations shown are those where more than five service personnel are stationed. 6. Personnel who are overseas temporarily are recorded against the location of their home port/unit. 7. Due to the rounding methods used totals may not always equal the sum of the parts. When rounding to 10, numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.  Source: DASA (Tri-Service) 
		
	
	
		
			  Global location of civilian personnel at 1 October 2006 
			  Location at 1 October 2006  Civilian staff in full-time equivalent (FTE) terms 
			 Afghanistan 320 
			 Australia 10 
			 Balkans 660 
			 Belgium 150 
			 Belize 170 
			 Brunei 310 
			 Canada 10 
			 Cyprus 2,820 
			 Falkland Islands 60 
			 France 30 
			 Germany 8,680 
			 Ghana 30 
			 Gibraltar 1,030 
			 Greece 10 
			 India 10 
			 Iraq 1,400 
			 Italy 50 
			 Kenya 180 
			 Malaysia 10 
			 Nepal 370 
			 Netherlands 50 
			 Portugal 10 
			 Saudi Arabia 30 
			 Sierra Leone 190 
			 Singapore 30 
			 South Atlantic 10 
			 Turkey 10 
			 USA 190 
			 Elsewhere(1) 330 
			 Grand total 17,160 
			 (1) "Elsewhere" includes all locations where five or less FTE are stationed, plus 180 staff serving afloat.  Notes: 1. Figures include locally engaged civilians and UK staff posted abroad. Postings abroad include any staff recorded centrally as employed outside the United Kingdom at 1 October 2006. 2. Locations shown are those where more than five FTE are stationed. 3. Figures are shown in full-time equivalent terms i.e. part-timers are counted proportionately based on number of hours worked. 4. Due to the rounding methods used totals may not always equal the sum of the parts. When rounding to 10, numbers ending in five have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.  Source: DASA (Civilian)

Deployment

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what locations British troops are  (a) deployed and  (b) stationed; and how many troops are deployed or stationed at each location.

Adam Ingram: Location statistics may be compiled based on posted (stationed) location or deployed location. Posted (stationed) location is where an individual is permanently based. Deployed location is where an individual is physically located at a particular point in time and is typically used for short tours of duty.
	The following table shows the number of personnel deployed on operations by operation at 1 January 2007. The individual location could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Operation  Number of personnel deployed 
			 Telic 7,020 
			 Herrick 5,700 
			 Oculus 630 
			 UN operations 290 
			 Total 13,640 
		
	
	The strength of UK regular forces posted outside the UK is available in Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 6—"Global Location of UK Regular Forces". The strength of UK regular forces posted in the UK by Government office region and local authority is available in Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 10—"UK Regular Forces Distribution across UK". Reliable data below local authority are not available centrally.
	TSP 6 and 10 are published quarterly; the most recent publications show the numbers of service personnel at 1 October 2006.
	Copies of TSP 6 and 10 are available in the Library of the House and at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tsp6/tsp6_oct06.pdf
	and
	www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tsp10/tsp10tab1.html
	respectively.

Deployment

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British forces are deployed overseas; what the cost has been of such overseas deployment in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of overseas deployments in 1996-97.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 23 January 2007
	As at 9 January 2007 there were 14,100 military personnel deployed overseas on operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans. The total cost of these operations in 2005-06 was £1,220 million. The total cost of operations in 1996-97 was £253 million.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent by each of his Department's executive agencies in each of the Government office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Derek Twigg: The information is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which of the executive agencies of his Department have regional offices outside London.

Derek Twigg: All the defence agencies have offices in the UK outside London, other than Service Children's Education, which is located entirely overseas, primarily in Germany and Cyprus.

Free Newspapers

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements are in place for the provision of free newspapers to UK services people serving overseas; whether he has any plans to change these arrangements; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 22 January 2007
	Newspapers are provided free of charge to operational theatres on the basis of one paper per 10 personnel. They are delivered, by the contracted supplier, daily to RAF Brize Norton for onward transmission. There are no plans to change these arrangements.

Helicopters

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the availability of helicopters for immediate deployment.

Adam Ingram: All UK helicopters deemed fit for purpose are available for immediate deployment. They are deemed fit for purpose if they are capable of undertaking a specific role identified in a particular theatre on a given day. Helicopters are not available for tasking if they are undergoing scheduled maintenance, modification programmes or any unforeseen rectification work that can arise on a day-to-day basis. A helicopter assessed as not fit-for- purpose may be returned to the front line at very short notice to meet operational demand.
	I also refer the hon. Member to my answer of 8 January 2007,  Official Report, column 87W, which gives details on forward fleet and average fit-for- purpose figures.

HMS Sheffield: Board of Inquiry

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the evidential basis was for the conclusions of the HMS Sheffield Board of Inquiry that  (a) (Annex A-1 para 10) neither Sea Dart nor 4.5 inch Mk 8 engaged the missile or the firing aircraft, 4.5 inch alarm procedure was not used and  (b) (para 11) Weapons were neither manned nor loaded; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The conclusions were based on information contained in Annexes H (Narrative of Attack) and J (Analysis of Attack and Response) of the BOI Report into the loss of HMS Sheffield. This information, in turn, was drawn from written and oral evidence provided to the Board by witnesses from HMS Sheffield, HMS Glasgow and HMS Coventry.
	Annexes H and J of the BOI report are due to be published on the MOD website before the end of January, as part of the release of the second tranche of documents relating to the sinking of HMS Sheffield. However, as advised in my written ministerial statement on 2 November 2006,  Official Report, column 24WS, we will be withholding from publication copies of the witness statements that were taken by the board, as we believe that the disclosure of this personal data would be unfair to the individuals concerned and would be contrary to the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998.

Information Infrastructure Contract

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria the Atlas Consortium is expected to meet in order to be awarded Increments  (a) 2b,  (b) 2c and  (c) 3 of the Defence information infrastructure contract.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 19 January 2007
	Detailed criteria for Increments 2b, 2c and 3 have not yet been decided, but will be based on normal MOD practice:
	Ability to meet the requirement;
	Value for money;
	Reliability/robustness of provider;
	Affordability.
	Additional criteria will cover appropriate indicators of past performance and evidence of likely future performance in the requirement areas.

Japanese Internment

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many claims for compensation for British civilians interned by the Japanese have been made by British Jews interned in Singapore; and how many have been paid.

Derek Twigg: I am aware from the Association of British Civilian Internees Far East Region that a number of Jewish internees, as other ethnic groups, who were held by the Japanese in Singapore during the second world war may fail to qualify under the Government's ex-gratia payment scheme for former far east prisoners of war and civilian internees. However, our records do not allow us to determine the number of applicants in this category and whether they were accepted or rejected under the scheme. The underlying principle of the scheme remains that awards will be made to those who were British at the time of their internment, who can demonstrate the required close link to the UK.

Nuclear Submarines

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence where each decommissioned nuclear-powered submarine is stored.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 24 January 2007
	Fourteen nuclear powered submarines have left naval service and are stored safely afloat at the following locations:
	
		
			  Submarine  Location 
			 Conqueror HM Naval Base (HMNB) Devonport 
			 Courageous HMNB Devonport 
			 Sovereign HMNB Devonport 
			 Spartan HMNB Devonport 
			 Splendid HMNB Devonport 
			 Valiant HMNB Devonport 
			 Warspite HMNB Devonport 
			 Churchill Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Dreadnought Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Renown (Ship Submersible Ballistic Nuclear (SSBN)) Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Repulse (SSBN) Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Resolution (SSBN) Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Revenge (SSBN) Rosyth Dockyard 
			 Swiftsure Rosyth Dockyard 
		
	
	Three of the submarines (Sovereign, Spartan and Splendid) are awaiting defuel.

Officer Training

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many officer cadets are in training at the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell; what the service personnel establishment is; what the civilian establishment is; and what the annual costs were in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: As at 23 January 2007 there were 320 officer cadets in training at the Officer and Aircrew Cadet Training Unit (OACTU) at the Royal Air Force College Cranwell. The service personnel establishment at OACTU is 100 and the civilian establishment is 20.
	The following table gives the annual direct costs for training at the OACTU for each of the last five financial years:
	
		
			  Financial year  Cost (£ million) 
			 2001-02 4.136 
			 2002-03 5.384 
			 2003-04 5.980 
			 2004-05 5.892 
			 2005-06 8.316 
			  Notes: 1. Financial figures have been rounded to the nearest £1,000. 2. Personnel figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.

Operation Active Endeavour

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the UK contribution to Operation Active Endeavour; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 24 January 2007
	Operation Active Endeavour is a maritime focused NATO Counter Terrorism Operation in the Mediterranean. Its importance was reaffirmed at NATO's Riga Summit in November 2006. As a committed NATO member the UK fully supports the Operation and makes a highly effective contribution. The UK provides a dedicated surface warship for between 2 to 4 months each year and, on an opportunity basis, other assets operating in the Region.

Parachute Training

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the adequacy of parachute training  (a) facilities and  (b) resources for (i) new and (ii) serving members of the airborne forces between 2008 and 2011; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The parachute training facilities at No. 1 Parachute Training School, RAF Brize Norton and the Brigade Parachute Squadron at Wattisham Airfield, support the training of new and serving members of the airborne forces. Aircraft availability is to some extent dependent on current operational requirements but parachute training continues to be conducted to meet our requirements.
	In terms of future facilities and resources, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 8 January 2007,  Official Report, column 326W, to the hon. Member for Canterbury (Mr. Brazier). The departmental planning round is yet to be completed but it remains the case that all troops deployed on operations will receive the required level of training to enable them to fulfil their military tasks.

RAF Coltishall and RAF Scampton

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of  (a) RAF Coltishall and  (b) RAF Scampton.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 22 January 2007
	Former RAF Coltishall has been declared surplus to defence requirements and is currently in the process of disposal.
	An element of the United Kingdom's Air Surveillance and Control System, one of the Air Combat Service Support Units and the RAF Acrobatic Team are based at RAF Scampton. The RAF is conducting studies to consider basing options for these units and this may affect the future of RAF Scampton. No decisions have yet been taken.

Trident

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the conclusions of the naval base review will be available to the House prior to the debate on Trident replacement; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: The Government have committed to a full debate on our decision to renew the UK's independent nuclear deterrent. It is only right that Parliament has the opportunity to debate and vote on this decision. The outcome of that debate will, therefore, inform the naval base review.

Trident

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the UK is dependent on the US for conducting tests on the Trident warhead.

Des Browne: holding answer 15 January 2007
	There are a number of areas where the UK and US undertake joint trials programmes under the auspices of the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement as it is more cost-effective than each nation undertaking wholly independent trials programmes. For these trials, each nation is dependent on the other for the provision of agreed facilities and trials information.

UN Peacekeeping Missions

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces are deployed on UN peacekeeping missions; and where they are deployed.

Adam Ingram: At 8 January 2007, some 290 service personnel were deployed on UN operations abroad.
	The vast majority of those deployed were deployed in Cyprus. Other locations include Georgia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo and Liberia.

Veterans Day 2006

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost was to his Department of the 2006 Veterans day event.

Derek Twigg: The cost of Veterans day 2006 to the Department's Veterans budget was £406,000. This does not include the costs associated with the deployment of bands, display teams, catering units and other service assets which played a part in the national and local events; these costs cannot be separately identified but the involvement was not large-scale.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Abu Sayyaf

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to her EU counterparts about the decision of the EU to classify the Abu Sayyaf group as a terrorist organisation.

Kim Howells: Abu Sayyaf was listed as an entity belonging to or associated with al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden or the Taliban by the Committee of the UN Security Council charged with the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1267 on 6 October 2001. UN member states are obliged to implement a world-wide asset freeze against all groups designated as terrorist organisations by the UN Security Council. Once a terrorist entity is added to the 1267 list we do not make specific representations to EU partners regarding their listing in the EU, as these groups are automatically added to the EU's list of terrorist organisations. This process was followed in the case of Abu Sayyaf.

Afghanistan

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2007,  Official Report, column 586W, on Afghanistan, what payments have been made personally to Engineer Daud, former Governor of Helmand Province, by the UK Government; and for what purpose.

Kim Howells: The UK has made one payment to former Governor of Helmand Province, Engineer Daud, of US$10,000. These funds were used as part of a quick impact project (QIP) helping to support local government capacity building through a shura (local council) initiative in Musa Qala.
	QIPs are delivering sustainable short-term development results in Helmand, helping provide a platform for longer-term development activities throughout the province. The UK has allocated US$9 million this financial year to fund QIPs in the province. Working closely with Afghan authorities, the UK has implemented over 100 projects in Helmand. These include provision of emergency humanitarian assistance to drought victims, reconstruction work on flood defences and major irrigation systems, and the construction of new classrooms for Lashkar Gah's boys' and girls' schools.

Bangladesh

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects elections to be held in Bangladesh.

Kim Howells: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham (Lyn Brown) on 22 January 2007,  Official Report, columns 1448-49W, in which I stated that the Government continue to urge a constructive dialogue to find an early and democratic political solution acceptable to the people of Bangladesh.

Bolivia

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received on recent tension in the Bolivian state of Cochabamba.

Geoff Hoon: We receive regular reports from our Embassy in La Paz on the recent tension in Cochabamba and we continue to monitor events closely with our EU partners. We have also updated our travel advice regularly to reflect the situation. On 16 January 2007, the EU presidency issued a statement noting the EU's concern over the recent violence and loss of life, and calling for all parties to resolve their differences in a spirit of tolerance and dialogue.

Chinese Missile Tests

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make representations to her Chinese counterpart on the recent Chinese missile tests.

Ian McCartney: On 18 January officials from our embassy in Beijing made representations to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the missile test, expressing concern about the lack of international consultation before the test was conducted and the possible impact of debris from the test on other objects in space.
	The UK also expressed concern that the development of this technology and the manner in which this test was conducted is inconsistent with the spirit of China's statements to the UN and other bodies on the military use of space. As part of our regular dialogue on international issues, we will continue to work to encourage China to play a constructive role in the international community.

Cluster Munitions

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of progress in the clearance of cluster munitions from affected areas in Lebanon; what recent representations she has made to the Government of Israel to assist in the clearance of these munitions; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: According to the UN Mine Action Co-ordination Centre south Lebanon (UNMACC), a total of 95,304 cluster bombs have been cleared by UNMACC teams, UN Interim Force in Lebanon teams, and the Lebanese armed forces.
	We continue to be concerned about levels of unexploded ordnance and cluster munitions in south Lebanon. We have called on Israel to make a public statement about their use of cluster munitions and have discussed the issue with the Government of Israel, the Government of Lebanon and human rights organisations. The Israeli defence forces have launched an inquiry into the use of cluster munitions during the conflict between Israel and Hizbollah between 12 July and 14 August last year, including on the chain of command between in ordering their use. This inquiry is ongoing and its findings will be made public once the investigation has concluded.
	In response to the dangers posed by unexploded cluster bombs in Lebanon, the Department of International Development has this year committed a total of £2.8 million to the Mines Advisory Group and the UN Mine Action Service for clearing unexploded ordnance. I announced £l million of this during my visit to Lebanon in December 2006.

Cluster Munitions

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made towards securing an international agreement on the explosive remnants of war with a particular focus on cluster munitions; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: A Group of Government Experts (GGE) is working within the framework of the convention on certain conventional weapons (CCW) on the humanitarian impact of cluster munitions. This work is an essential preliminary step before any future negotiations that might lead to a new legally binding protocol. The UK played a leading role in pushing for this GGE and will work to ensure it is focused on producing practical results. The UK also played a leading role in securing Protocol V of the CCW on Explosive Remnants of War, which came into force in November 2006. The UK is in the process of ratifying this protocol.

Correspondence

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters to her Department sent from hon. Members during Session 2005-06 remain unanswered, broken down by those which are  (a) one,  (b) two,  (c) three,  (d) four and  (e) over six months old.

Margaret Beckett: There are no letters sent to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office by hon. Members during the session 2005-06 that remain unanswered.

Correspondence

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters were received by her Department from hon. Members in each of the last 12 months; how many such letters were responded to within  (a) 10 and  (b) 20 days of receipt; how many were answered after 20 days from the date of receipt; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of Departments in replying to hon. Members' Peers' correspondence. The report for 2005 was published on 30 March 2006,  Official Report, columns 75-78WS. Information relating to 2006 is currently being collated and will be published as soon as it is ready.

Departmental Expenditure

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate she has made of expenditure by her Department in each of the Government Office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Geoff Hoon: Chapter 7 of the annual Treasury publication "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses" (PESA) details expenditure on services in the regions and countries of the United Kingdom.
	Identifiable spending in each region of England by Government Department for 2004-05 (latest available data) is contained within table 7.19 of the 2006 edition of PESA.

Departmental Expenditure

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much programme expenditure sponsored by her Department was spent via each of the Government Offices for the regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Geoff Hoon: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not sponsor any programme expenditure spent by any of the Government Offices for the regions.

Departmental Travel

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her Department's expenditure on foreign travel, including accommodation, was in  (a) 1996-97 and  (b) 2005-06.

Geoff Hoon: With regard to ministerial travel, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the hon. Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan) on 19 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1808W.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office spent approximately £28.9 million on foreign travel by officials in 1996-97. The figure for 2005-06 was approximately £63.2 million. These amounts include expenditure on transfer and leave journeys of UK-based staff posted to British missions overseas and their dependants as well as for duty visits overseas by officials.
	Because we do not retain detailed records of expenditure from as long ago as 1996-97, and because of differences between the accounting systems in use then and now, it is not possible to give a complete explanation for the increase in expenditure. Reasons include:
	global inflation over a period of nine years and its impact on the cost of travel;
	the redesign of our overseas network so that more staff are posted in the Far East and Asia at the expense of posts in Europe, with higher travel costs; and
	the large increase in numbers of staff travelling to Iraq and Afghanistan.
	The figure for 2005-06 also includes £12.9 million for Consular crisis expenditure for which there was no equivalent in 1996-97.

Engagements

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what dates Ministers in her Department made official visits to the London boroughs of  (a) Tower Hamlets,  (b) Newham and  (c) Waltham Forest in each year since 1997.

Kim Howells: I visited Tower Hamlets on 16 February 2006 as part of a Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Muslim outreach initiative. There are no other records of FCO Ministers making official visits to Tower Hamlets, Newham or Waltham Forest, although records have not been kept for the full period in question.

EU Fines

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1509W, on EU fines, on how many occasions the UK was fined by the European Commission in each of the last five years; and how much this amounted to in each year.

Geoff Hoon: The UK has never been fined by the European Commission as it does not have the power to impose fines on member states. The European Court of Justice is the only EU institution with the power to impose fines on member states for non-compliance, with European law.

EU White Paper

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the Government will issue a White Paper on the future of the EU in advance of any negotiations arising from the German presidency's declared intention to revive discussions on the EU Constitutional Treaty.

Geoff Hoon: The Government do not intend to issue such a White Paper in advance of discussions on the future of the Constitutional Treaty at the European Council in June. However, the Government will shortly publish a White Paper on the German presidency, which includes its approach to future of Europe discussions. I also published a written ministerial statement on 5 December 2006. The Government's approach to forthcoming discussions on the future of the EU is also set out in my written ministerial statement on 5 December 2006,  Official Report, columns 10-11WS.

Indonesia

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has received on Indonesian military and police operations in the Puncak Jaya region of West Papua, Indonesia.

Ian McCartney: The operation was raised by the noble Baroness Rawlings in another place during a short debate on Papua on 8 January 2007,  Official Report, columns 100-01. I have also subsequently received letters from TAPOL (the Indonesian Human Rights Campaign), and two hon. Members.

Indonesia

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make a statement on the recent displacement of West Papuan civilians caused by Indonesian military and police operations in the Puncak Jaya region of West Papua.

Ian McCartney: We have received reports of an ongoing police operation supported by members of the armed forces in the Puncak Jaya region of Papua, to investigate the killing of two army officers by suspected Free Papua Movement fighters in early December 2006. The area is extremely isolated, and it is hard to obtain verifiable information. Our embassy in Jakarta has sought clarification from the Indonesian authorities and continues to monitor the situation. However, it is realistic to assume that some civilians have fled the area and have become internally displaced following the start of the most recent operation.

Indonesia

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to the Indonesian government on Indonesian military and police operations in the Puncak Jaya region of West Papua.

Ian McCartney: Our embassy in Jakarta has sought clarification from the Indonesian authorities on the ongoing police operation supported by members of the armed forces in Puncak Jaya. The British defence attaché in Jakarta was informed that the purpose of the operation was to investigate the killing of two army officers. The embassy has also contacted members of non-governmental organisations and religious groups in Papua to seek further information.

Iraq

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her Department's latest assessment is of civilian casualties for military and terrorist operations in Iraq in each month since February 2002; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: All civilian deaths in Iraq resulting from military and terrorist attacks are a tragedy. The Government of Iraq are best placed to monitor the numbers of Iraqi civilian casualties. But we continue to believe that there are no comprehensive or reliable figures for deaths since March 2003. Estimates vary according to the method of collection.
	According to figures released by the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior on 2 January 2007, 12,320 civilians were killed during 2006. The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq estimates that 34,452 civilians were killed in 2006, on the basis of information obtained through the Iraqi Health Ministry, hospitals and the Medico-Legal Institute in Baghdad.
	http://www.uniraq.org/aboutus/HR.asp

Iraq

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the latest figures received by her Department from the Iraqi Ministry of Health are on the number of Iraqi civilians who have been  (a) violently killed and  (b) injured through violence since May 2003; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him today (UIN 111135).

Lord Levy

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when Lord Levy last visited Kazakhstan as the Government's envoy; what the purpose of the trip was; what meetings he held; and what the cost was to the public purse.

Geoff Hoon: My noble Friend Lord Levy has only visited Kazakhstan once, on 1-2 September 2003 as my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Special Envoy. During the visit, he met President Nazarbayev, the President's Foreign and Security Policy Adviser Massimov, Foreign Minister Tokaev and Chairman of the National Bank Grigory Marchenko. During these meetings the then ambassador, James Sharp, and a senior Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) official were present, as well as the Kazakh Ambassador to London Yerlan Idrissov and other Kazakh officials.
	The purpose of the trip was to discuss the political and economic development of Kazakhstan, and regional issues, and to report back on these subjects.
	Details of all my noble Friend Lord Levy's overseas visits and meetings as my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Special Envoy are available on the FCO website at: www.fco.gov.uk.
	Lord Levy receives no remuneration and travels at his own expense.

Lord Levy

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries Lord Levy has visited in the last 12 months in his capacity as the Government's envoy; when each visit took place; and what the  (a) purpose and  (b) cost was of each visit.

Kim Howells: The details of all my noble Friend Lord Levy's overseas visits and meetings over the last 12 months, as my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Special Envoy, are on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website (www.fco.gov.uk). Lord Levy undertakes meetings to exchange views on a range of issues, but in the main on the Middle East Peace Process. The visit to Brazil during this 12-month period was also on a range of issues, but in the main on bilateral and regional issues. Lord Levy receives no remuneration and travels at his own expense.

Nepal

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she expects the Nepalese Maoists to join the interim government in Nepal; what representations she has received on this issue; and what discussions she has had with  (a) the UK ambassador to the United Nations and  (b) the British embassy in Kathmandu on the interim Government.

Kim Howells: The UK has played a significant role in helping to drive the peace process in Nepal and welcomes the formation of the interim Parliament following the recent adoption of the interim constitution. The introduction of 83 Maoist members to the interim Parliament is a positive step towards greater inclusion in the political process in Nepal. We expect Maoists to take their place in an interim Government to be formed following sufficient arms separation. The UK has taken the lead in New York on the drafting of a presidential statement and a Security Council resolution on UN support to Nepal's peace process. The full text of the presidential statement can be found on the UN website at:
	http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8883.doc.htm.
	The Prime Minister of Nepal has personally thanked our ambassador in Kathmandu for the UK's efforts to secure these. Officials from our embassy in Kathmandu will continue to work closely with the Nepalese Government, particularly in key areas of human rights, rule of law and the forthcoming elections to a Constituent Assembly.

Nepal

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made on the unrest in south eastern Nepal.

Kim Howells: The UK has not made any representations on the unrest in south-eastern Nepal. However, we are deeply concerned about the recent riots and civil unrest in the Terai and urge the Government of Nepal and Maoists to take positive steps to demonstrate their commitment to inclusion as outlined in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. The lack of inclusion felt by many marginalised groups was one of the key causes of the conflict in Nepal. The UK played a leading role in drafting UN Security Council Resolution 1740 on Nepal which was adopted unanimously on 23 January. We worked hard to ensure in particular that this Resolution recognises the need to pay special attention to the needs of women, children and traditionally marginalised groups in the peace process. Failure now to acknowledge the demands of Madeshis and other groups based in the Terai risks further flare-ups, which have the potential to undermine the prospects for elections to the Constituent Assembly.

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much her Department paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not have a central record of the numbers of staff under contract from agencies. The annual financial accounts have provided the cost of agency staff since 1997. The reason for the increase was a recruitment freeze during 2004. The FCO started to recruit permanent staff again during 2005-06, filling gaps caused by security clearance delays with temporary agency staff. There will be a reduction in agency staff during 2007. Agencies have been selected subject to the availability of suitably security-cleared staff, the performance of staff and negotiated rates.
	
		
			   £ 
			 1997-98 445,944 
			 1998-99 804,788 
			 1999-00 971,657 
			 2000-01 1,255,817 
			 2001-02 1,933,841 
			 2002-03 1,850,779 
			 2003-04 2,357,123 
			 2004-05 1,114,873 
			 2005-06 2,299,111

Safe Havens: Terrorists

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of which countries offer a safe haven and training grounds for terrorists.

Kim Howells: The Government condemn any state which, as a matter of policy, supports terrorism and is also concerned at any inadvertent use of a state's territory as a base for terrorism. We have, for example, expressed our concerns about the close links between Iran and violent extremists operating in Iraq and Lebanon. We have also made clear to Syria that it has a strategic choice: either to decide to act responsibly and play a constructive role in the region or to continue to support terrorism and those trying to disrupt democracy.

Somalia

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of recent Ethiopian action in Somalia; what discussions she has had with the Ethiopian Government on this issue; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 23 January 2007
	The Ethiopian action in Somalia has resulted in the Transitional Federal Government gaining control of Mogadishu and most of the rest of south and central Somalia.
	The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my noble Friend Lord Triesman of Tottenham, has spoken to Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia about the recent action in Somalia and officials remain in frequent contact with their Ethiopian counterparts.
	We want Ethiopian troops to withdraw as soon as they can, as Ethiopia has said it wants. We support the early deployment of a stabilisation force, as envisaged by UN Security Council resolution 1725, in order to help avoid a security vacuum and a return to civil war.

Somalia

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she has taken in support of establishing an international coalition to replace Ethiopian troops in Somalia.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 23 January 2007
	We are working closely with our international partners on this issue.
	John Sawers, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Director-General Political, represented the UK at the International Contact Group (ICG) on Somalia in Nairobi on 5 January. In its communiqué, the ICG expressed an urgent need for funding to facilitate the deployment of a stabilisation force in Somalia, as envisaged in UN Security Council resolution 1725. It welcomed Uganda's offer to be part of this force.
	I attended the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council on 22 January. We concluded that the EU stands ready to help with a stabilisation mission, as envisaged in UN Security Council resolution 1725.

Somalia

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she has had with her Kenyan counterparts on  (a) the situation in Somalia,  (b) Ethiopian actions in Somalia and  (c) US air strikes in Somalia; what the outcome was of these discussions; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 23 January 2007
	Our high commissioner in Nairobi has spoken to Foreign Minister Tuju of Kenya about the recent action in Somalia and officials remain in frequent contact with their Kenyan counterparts on this subject.
	We made our position clear to the Kenyans:
	we fully support the Transitional Federal Government in their efforts to find a lasting and inclusive political settlement, and to become the effective governing authority; and
	we want Ethiopian troops to withdraw as soon as they can, and as Ethiopia has said it wants. The early deployment of a stabilisation force, as envisaged by UN Security Council resolution 1725, is an important step to help avoid a security vacuum and a return to civil war.
	I refer the hon. Member to the response my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Islington, North (Jeremy Corbyn) on 10 January 2007,  Official Report, columns 281-82.

Somalia

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her policy is on the independence of Somaliland from the rest of Somalia.

Margaret Beckett: We do not recognise Somaliland as an independent state, nor does the rest of the international community. The UK has signed up to a common EU position and to many UN Security Council Presidential Statements, which refer to the territorial integrity and unity of Somalia. Nevertheless, the UK is aware of the position of the Somaliland authorities and of opinion within Somaliland. We hope that Somaliland will engage in early dialogue with the Transitional Federal Government in Somalia and that a mutually acceptable solution for their future relationship can be agreed. We readily acknowledge Somaliland's achievements over the last decade and continue to support actively progress and stability in Somaliland.

Southern Lebanon

Jane Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate she has made of the number of unexploded  (a) cluster bombs and  (b) other ordnance remaining in the region of southern Lebanon following the conflict of August 2006.

Kim Howells: As at January 2007, a total of 838 individual cluster bomb strike locations have been identified by the UN Mine Action Co-ordination Centre south Lebanon (UNMACC) from the conflict last year. UNMACC have estimated that there may be up to 1 million unexploded cluster munitions in south Lebanon. The then UN Secretary-General reported that four de-miners were injured in November 2006 when they stepped on Israeli-manufactured anti-personnel mines in south Lebanon. The Secretary-General noted that the incident took place in an area considered safe prior to the summer 2006 conflict, which raised the possibility that the mines were laid during the conflict. We fully support the Secretary-General's call for any party that laid such mines to provide information as to where they have been laid to prevent similar tragic incidents occurring in the future.

Southern Lebanon

Jane Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) children under the age of 16 and  (b) others have been killed in southern Lebanon by unexploded ordnance since the conflict of August 2006.

Kim Howells: According to the UN Mine Action Co-ordination Centre south Lebanon, the statistics for those killed and injured by unexploded ordnance in south Lebanon from 14 August 2006 to 7 January 2007 are as follows:
	
		
			   Injured  Killed  Total 
			  Children (0-12)
			 Male 20 2 22 
			 Female 4 0 4 
			 
			  Youth (13-18)
			 Male 37 4 41 
			 Female 2 0 2 
			  Adult (19+)
			 Male 85 13 98 
			 Female 8 0 8 
			 
			 Total 156 19 175 
		
	
	Of these, eight deaths and 19 injuries were among those conducting the de-mining.

UN Security Council

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to  (a) China, ( b) France,  (c) the Russian Federation,  (d) the United States,  (e) Belgium,  (f) the Republic of the Congo,  (g) Ghana,  (h) Indonesia,  (i) Italy,  (j) Panama,  (k) Peru,  (l) Qatar,  (m) Slovakia and  (n) South Africa on UK support for India gaining a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

Kim Howells: The United Kingdom's position on this issue is well known. Our support for Indian permanent membership of an enlarged UN Security Council has been publicly reiterated in recent months by several senior members of the Government: by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in his foreign policy speech in Georgetown in May 2006; by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary during her visit to India in November 2006; and by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer during his visit to India in January 2007. We have not made direct representations to UN Security Council partners.

WEU Recommendations

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make a statement on paragraphs 12, 13, 15 and 16 of Recommendation 780 on European forces in Afghanistan adopted by the Assembly of the Western European Union on 20 June 2006.

Geoff Hoon: holding answer 18 January 2007
	The UK agrees with the emphasis in paragraph 12 of the Western European Union (WEU) Recommendation 780 on dismantling the European trafficking networks. The UK is a partner nation to the Afghan Government on counter narcotics and is providing support on developing their capacity to tackle drug-trafficking networks. Separately, the UK is pursuing policies aimed at disrupting these networks in Europe through bilateral and multilateral co-operation, including engaging with Europol, and the Police Chiefs Task Force. The focus is on interdiction activity against drugs flowing into the EU and money flowing out.
	The UK supports a visible and strong role for the EU in Afghanistan and enhanced co-ordination of EU assistance (as advocated in paragraph 13 of WEU Recommendation 780). It welcomes the announcement by the Commission of its intention to spend €40 million on justice sector reform in Afghanistan. The UK supports the deployment of a European Security and Defence Policy mission to Afghanistan focusing on policing, but with linkages to the wider rule of law. Protecting EU civilian personnel in Afghanistan is a priority. However, a Battlegroup cannot be used to protect them as this is a rapid response capability for use in a crisis.
	There are many existing opportunities for dialogue between the US and European countries on Afghanistan, both bilaterally and multilaterally. The UK therefore does not intend to call for dialogue between the US and WEU, as proposed in paragraph 15 of the WEU Recommendation 780.
	Purchasing the poppy crop, as proposed in paragraph 16 of WEU Recommendation 780, is not a realistic or sustainable solution. It does not form part of the Afghan Government's National Drug Control Strategy, which the UK fully supports. The UK agrees with the Afghan Government's position that licensing opium cultivation for medical use is not a realistic solution to the problems of the opium economy.

WMD Dossier

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 8 January 2007,  Official Report, column 13W, on the WMD dossier, whether the first draft of the Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction dossier authored by John Williams makes reference to Iraq's ability to deploy weapons of mass destruction within 45 minutes.

Margaret Beckett: There are no plans for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to publish Mr. Williams draft document, extracts from it or to confirm details of the contents.

WPC Yvonne Fletcher

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what  (a) recent steps she has taken and  (b) steps she plans to take to bring the person who murdered WPC Yvonne Fletcher in 1984 to justice.

Kim Howells: Metropolitan Police Service officers last visited Libya to pursue the case in December 2006.
	We regularly raise the case with the Libyan authorities and I have done so myself.
	We continue to press for resolution of the case.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Departmental Expenditure

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much her Department spent in each of the Government Office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Vera Baird: The following is the net outturn data for 2004-05, which DCA provided to the Treasury as part of the Country and Regional Analysis (CRA), which breaks down net expenditure into the regions recognized by the Office for National Statistics.
	These data are used to compile the tables in Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) 2006 published document.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Region  Amount 
			 Scotland 24.9 
			 Wales 47.0 
			 Northern Ireland 6.3 
			 North East 34.0 
			 North West 100.2 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 48.3 
			 East Midlands 42.3 
			 West Midlands 52.4 
			 Eastern 42.7 
			 London 139.6 
			 South East 101.3 
			 South West 60.4 
			 Outside UK 0.0 
			 Total 699.2 
		
	
	The aforementioned data represents core spending and does not include agency or NDPB expenditure.
	In keeping with the basis of the CRA analysis, the figures exclude non-cash costs and provisions and are produced on the basis of where the benefit is estimated to be rather then where the expenditure is necessarily incurred.
	Please note that not all expenditure can be apportioned to a region, as the spending benefits the whole country, and not a specific area.

Departmental Expenditure

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much programme expenditure sponsored by her Department was spent via each of the Government Offices for the Regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Vera Baird: To provide this breakdown would incur disproportionate costs.

Executive Agencies

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much was spent by each of her Department's Executive agencies in each of the Government office regions in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Vera Baird: The following is the net out-turn data for 2004-05, which DCA provided to the Treasury as part of the Country and Regional Analysis (CRA). This breaks down net expenditure into the regions recognised by the Office for National Statistics.
	These data are used to compile the tables in Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) 2006 published document.
	
		
			  Region  Amount (£ million) 
			 Scotland 0 
			 Wales 0.01 
			 Northern Ireland 0 
			 North East 0.01 
			 North West 0.04 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 0.02 
			 East Midlands 0.02 
			 West Midlands 0.02 
			 Eastern 0.04 
			 London 0.04 
			 South East 0.06 
			 South West 0.04 
			 Outside UK 0 
			 Total 0.30 
		
	
	During the financial year 2004-05, DCA had just one agency—the Public Guardian Office.
	In keeping with the basis of the CRA analysis, the aforementioned figures exclude non-cash costs and provisions and are produced on the basis of where the benefit is estimated to be rather then where the expenditure is necessarily incurred.
	Please note that not all expenditure can be apportioned to a region, as the spending benefits the whole country, and not a specific area.

Personal Injury Claims

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what assessment she has made of the effect of the proposed changes to the lower limit for personal injury claims in the small claims procedure on victims of road traffic accidents.

Vera Baird: The Government have been considering all the case track limits and intends to publish a consultation paper in the near future.

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much her Department paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: My Department has had a centrally managed contract with Kelly Services Ltd. for the provision of agency staff since 2001. Prior to this, expenditure relating to temporary staff was not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Information regarding the expenditure on temporary staff employed through Kelly Services appears as follows:
	
		
			  Financial year  Expenditure (£) 
			 2001-02 2,360,000 
			 2002-03 4,968,000 
			 2003-04 5,248,987 
			 2004-05 8,688,141 
			 2005-06 10,465,205 
		
	
	The average number of temporary staff employed through Kelly Services rose from 395 in 2004-05 to 722 in 2005-06, due in part to the creation of HM Court Service and the incorporation of magistrates courts. The average number of staff employed through this contract to date in 2006-07 is around 600.
	Information relating to workers employed through other employment agencies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

PRIME MINISTER

Dorneywood

Oliver Heald: To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library the guidance issued to Ministers on the use and availability of Dorneywood for Government meetings and seminars.

Tony Blair: I have no current plans to do so.

Dorneywood

Oliver Heald: To ask the Prime Minister whether he intends to allocate Dorneywood to a senior Minister, or appropriate figure as permitted by the Dorneywood Trust Deed, as a residence for that individual.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 9 October 2006,  Official Report, column 3-4W to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove).

Government Reorganisation

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to seek parliamentary approval for major re-organisations of the machinery of Government; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 15 February 2006,  Official Report, columns 2031-2W.

Honours System

David Laws: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  which individual in 10 Downing street is co-ordinating the Government's response to police requests in relation to the police investigations into party donations and the honours system; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many e-mails have been passed to the police by staff at 10 Downing street since 1 June 2006 in relation to the investigations into party political donations and the awarding of honours; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Leominster (Bill Wiggin) at Prime Minister's Questions on 24 January 2007,  Official Report, columns 1416-17.

Pay-as-you-drive Scheme: E-petition

Nigel Evans: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many people signed the electronic petition on the Downing street website opposing the proposed pay as you drive scheme;
	(2)  what discussions he has had on requests to leave on the Downing street website the e-petition opposing the proposed pay as you drive scheme.

Tony Blair: The information requested is a matter of public record and is available on the No. 10 website. The length of time a petition remains open to signatures on the Downing street website is decided at the outset by the organiser of the petition, with a maximum period of one year.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Ambulance Response Times

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what percentage of emergency ambulance call outs met the emergency response time within the Northern Board area in  (a) 2003-04,  (b) 2004-05 and  (c) 2005-06;
	(2)  what percentage of emergency ambulance call outs met emergency response times within the catchment area of the Mid-Ulster hospital in  (a) 2003-04,  (b) 2004-05 and  (c) 2005-06.

Paul Goggins: Two response targets apply during the relevant periods.
	During the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service was required to achieve a response rate of 50 per cent. of all 999 calls in eight minutes, or, 95 per cent. of all 999 calls in 18 minutes (rural) or 21 minutes (sparsely populated). The response rates for the northern health and social services board (NHSSB) and Mid-Ulster areas during those years, are as follows:
	
		
			2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 Percentage responses within eight minutes NHSSB 45 42 43 
			  Mid-Ulster 41 46 40 
			 Percentage responses within 21 minutes NHSSB 92 91 91 
			  Mid-Ulster 93 92 89 
		
	
	During the 2005-06 year the ambulance service was required to achieve the national target of responding to 75 per cent. of Category A (life threatening) calls within eight minutes. The response rates for the NHSSB and Mid-Ulster areas are as follows:
	
		
			  2005-06 
			   Percentage responses within eight minutes 
			 NHSSB 44 
			 Mid-Ulster 38

Car Parks

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2007,  Official Report, column 935W, on car parks, how many of the newly installed machines were reported as not operating properly in the first month after installation.

David Cairns: The Chief Executive of Roads Service (Dr. Malcolm McKibbin) has written to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.
	 Letter from Dr. Malcolm McKibbin, dated 25 January 2007:
	You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question pursuant to the Answer of 15(th) January 2007, Official Report, column 935w, regarding, how many of the newly installed machines were reported as not operating properly in the first month after installation.
	As this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Roads Service, I have been asked to reply.
	As you will be aware, National Car Parks Ltd (NCP) is responsible for managing machine faults and their repair, which normally relate to ticket jams and coin jams. I am advised that in the first month after installation, all 70 new pay and display machines were reported as experiencing faults. This was as a result of a specific unforeseen problem identified with the newly installed machines relating to the ticket paper quality, which resulted in a much greater number of ticket jams than would usually be expected. I understand that NCP trialled a number of different types of ticket paper to resolve this issue and, while doing so, provided a sufficient maintenance resource to deal with these additional faults. These teething problems have since been resolved and the newly installed machines are now operating to a satisfactory level.
	I would add that the satisfactory maintenance of pay and display machines is a Key Performance Indicator in our enforcement contract with NCP. NCP performance in this area is being measured against fault response times detailed in the contract and will be continually monitored by Roads Service's Parking Enforcement Unit.

Water Meters

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many elderly people requested that water meters be installed at their homes in Northern Ireland in the last period for which figures are available.

David Cairns: The Chief Executive of Water Service (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) has written to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.
	 Letter from Mrs. Katharine Bryan, dated 25 January 2007:
	You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question about how many elderly people requested that water meters be installed at their homes in Northern Ireland in the last period for which figures are available (111371). I have been asked to reply as this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Water Service.
	During the past year, both Water Service and Water Reform Unit have received a significant number of enquiries about metering, including some requests to have a meter installed. In each case the customer has been provided with details of when the installation programme will commence and the likely date for availability of application packs which include information on deciding to opt for a meter, responsibilities of becoming a metered customer and a formal application form.
	The packs will be available on request from the Water Service Customer Relations Centre from the first week of February 2007 in conjunction with the Customer Readiness Campaign. Although no formal applications have been accepted to date, we have, since 1 October 2006, received 109 substantive requests from pensioners for a meter to be installed. It is our intention to issue these customers with application packs as soon as they are available.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Banking Systems

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the European Commission report on banks' electronic payment and interchange;
	(2)  what the total cost has been of the Office of Fair Trading inquiry into the Principles of Interchange including Mastercard; when the inquiry is likely to be concluded; and what benefits to the consumer are expected as a result of the inquiry;
	(3)  how the Office of Fair Trading will ensure that the discounts interest in the interchange system between banks will continue to benefit consumers if the Office of Fair Trading's inquiry recommends abolition of interchange;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to ensure that any principles of interchange recommended by the European Commission report will be aligned with recommendations from the Office of Fair Trading inquiry into the principles of interchange.

Ian McCartney: Government policy is not to comment on competition decisions made by the independent competition authorities either at EU or national level. This policy has been agreed at Cabinet level as the best way of ensuring these bodies' independence.
	Therefore these reports are solely a matter for these authorities. The hon. Member's questions should be put directly to John Fingleton, Chief Executive of the Office of Fair Trading.

Bankruptcies

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many businesses went bankrupt in each of the past three years for which figures are available.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The number of bankruptcy orders for self employed individuals in England and Wales can be seen in the following table together with the number of company liquidations.
	
		
			   Bankruptcy orders for self employed individuals  Company liquidations 
			 2003 9,139 14,184 
			 2004 9,564 12,192 
			 2005 10,839 12,893

Bankruptcies

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people declared themselves bankrupt in each year since 1996.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The table shows the number of bankruptcies from 1996 in England and Wales.
	
		
			   Bankruptcy orders 
			 1996 21,803 
			 1997 19,892 
			 1998 19,647 
			 1999 21,611 
			 2000 21,550 
			 2001 23,477 
			 2002 24,292 
			 2003 28,021 
			 2004 35,898 
			 2005 47,291

Berkeley Nuclear Laboratories Site

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals have been made for alternative uses of the Berkeley Nuclear Laboratories site following its delicensing.

Malcolm Wicks: The Berkeley Laboratories are in the delicensed part of the Berkeley nuclear licensed site. The NDA consults local communities via Site Stakeholder Groups to determine their preferred end state for sites. The NDA expects to receive initial proposals from the Berkeley Site Stakeholder Group by 31 March 2007.

Carbon Emissions

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when his Department began to measure its carbon emissions; what the volume of those emissions was in the last period for which figures are available; when his Department started to offset those emissions; what the cost is expected to be of offsetting his Department's emissions; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department started to record carbon emissions in 2000-01.
	In 2005-06 emissions of 4,280 tonnes were generated from energy consumption, 591,948 kilograms were emitted from vehicles, and it is estimated that 3,404 tonnes will be produced in 2006-07 from aviation travel. The emissions for energy and vehicles include the DTI agencies as well.
	The DTI has been offsetting aviation emissions from April 2006 at an estimated cost of £68,000 per annum.

East Midlands and Brazil: Business Links

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps are being taken to promote business and trade links between the East Midlands and Brazil.

Ian McCartney: UK Trade and Investment is the Government organisation that supports companies in the UK doing business internationally and overseas enterprises seeking to locate in the UK. Deepening our trade and economic relationships with emerging, potentially high growth markets is a key element in the UK's response to globalisation. Brazil is recognised in the UKTI corporate strategy as a high growth market offering both promising business opportunities and significant challenges to UK companies. Like other regions, in the East Midlands we recognise the growing importance of Brazil to companies wishing to develop their international business by ensuring that our individual clients have the support they need to assess opportunities in this market. In addition, the East Midlands Trade Association, a project supported by UKTI EM and emda, held a market information event in September 2006 focusing on key South American markets including Brazil. To allow companies to pursue their interest in Brazil, and again supported by emda, we will be taking 30 company representatives on a high profile market visit to Sao Paolo in March this year. Our visit will be led by Mrs. Pat Zadora, Chair of the East Midlands Business Forum and Deputy Leader of the East Midlands Regional Assembly. It will also be accompanied by representatives of three key sectors in the region, Biomedical, Creative Industries and Engineering, who will be commissioning research in Brazil to identify future opportunities for companies in the region
	Emda's inward investment team keeps a watching brief on investment from Brazil into the UK, and works closely with UKTI to identify suitable opportunities for the East Midlands.

Energy Market: Mis-selling

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the extent of mis-selling to small businesses by energy suppliers or their agents.

Malcolm Wicks: The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) is responsible for overseeing the performance of suppliers, including marketing activities, and to decide what appropriate regulatory action is to be taken should a supplier fail to meet its obligations.

Energy Market: Mis-selling

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what protection small businesses have from mis-selling in the energy market.

Malcolm Wicks: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave the hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey (Danny Alexander) on 8 January 2007,  Official Report, column 301W.

Energy Supplies: SMEs

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions  (a) he and  (b) his officials have had with energy companies on making terms and conditions available to small and medium-sized enterprises on request.

Malcolm Wicks: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave the hon. Member for Manchester, Withington (Mr. Leech) on 12 December 2006,  Official Report, column 917W.

EU-Mercosur Trade

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has made on free trade to his international counterparts in advance of the Mercosur Summit.

Ian McCartney: The UK Government have made and will continue to make frequent representations to its international counterparts on a number of trade policy issues, including Mercosur negotiations.
	The UK remains committed to an ambitious, balanced and mutually beneficial Association Agreement between the EU and Mercosur. We are keen to make progress in the negotiations, but the overall substance is significantly more important than timing.

European Regional Development Fund

David Maclean: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to what extent Cumbria's economic circumstances contributed to the North West's allocation of European Regional Development Fund resources from the regional competitiveness programme for the UK.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what account was taken of Cumbria's economic circumstances when calculating the North West's allocation of European regional development funds from the regional competitiveness programmes for the United Kingdom.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 17 January 2007
	The Government recognise that Cumbria, with a GDP per capita of 73.2 per cent. of the UK average, faces significant economic challenge.
	Cumbria did not qualify to receive the highest level of Structural Funds support under the Convergence Objective for 2007-13. It also narrowly missed out from receiving transitional Convergence funding for regions in the older member states who would have received full Convergence funding if enlargement had not taken place. Cumbria's GDP was slightly higher than the threshold to receive this funding (77.2 per cent. of the EU15 average, compared with the 75 per cent. threshold).
	Cumbria will be eligible to receive a proportion of the North West's allocation of Competitiveness funding, which is €1,164 million (in 2004 prices) in 2007-13. The Government believe that their allocation formula for the Competitiveness Objective provides an accurate measure of each region's economic needs. The Government have also decided to apply a 20 per cent. cap and safety net to each region's allocation. This means that no region will receive an increase or reduction in its proportion of funding of more than 20 per cent. in comparison with its proportion of mainstream Objective 2 European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) receipts in 2000-06.
	In making the regional allocations, the Government used sub-regional data in their allocation formula to take account of economic performance at the sub-regional level, including Cumbria. Within the North West, Cumbria had a GDP per head of 77.2 per cent. of the EU15 average and 84.6 per cent. of the EU25 average, compared with 92.5 per cent. and 101.3 per cent. for the North West region. These figures help to explain why the North West will receive the second highest allocation of mainstream Competitiveness funding of all the English regions. It has also benefited from the application of the safety net for the ERDF.
	The Government have noted the arguments of Cumbrian stakeholders for additional funding for their sub-region. However, the Government have decided not to top-slice the totals to provide specific funding for any sub-regions. The allocation of the Funds will be a matter for the Operational Programme, which is currently the subject of consultation in the North West.

Gas Storage Facilities

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which planning applications for gas storage facilities are awaiting a ministerial decision.

Malcolm Wicks: There are currently no applications for gas storage facilities awaiting a ministerial decision under either the Gas Act 1965 or the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. However, a public inquiry has been held into a planning application appeal for a gas storage facility in underground salt caverns in Fleetwood, Lancashire and the inspector is currently writing his report. A public inquiry into a gas storage facility at Caythorpe Gas Field in the East Riding of Yorkshire is also due to commence on 24 April 2007.

Miners' Compensation

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the average fee claimed by solicitors for dealing with a miner's compensation claim for  (a) chronic bronchitis and emphysema and  (b) vibration white finger has been since the scheme was introduced.

Malcolm Wicks: The average solicitors costs paid on claims settled by payment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and for vibration white finger (VWF) as at 14 January 2007 is shown as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease 2,214 
			 Vibration white finger 783 
		
	
	The figure for VWF excludes costs for services claims, as costs for these claims have yet to be agreed.

Miners' Compensation

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much solicitors have claimed in fees to date for dealing with claims from former miners for  (a) chronic bronchitis and emphysema and  (b) vibration white finger.

Malcolm Wicks: The total solicitors costs paid on all claims for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and vibration white finger (VWF) as at 14 January 2007 is shown as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease 816.4 
			 Vibration white finger 95.4

North West Regional Development

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans the North West Development Agency has for spending in Morecambe and Lunesdale in the next 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: The Northwest Development Agency is currently developing its Strategic Investment Plan working with the Lancashire Economic Partnership to identify priorities for Lancashire, including Morecambe and Lunesdale. Funding is being considered with partners as part of this process, and figures will be available in March 2007. At this point in time, £1.5 million has already been committed to the Midland Hotel in Morecambe and £532,000 to Carnforth under the Market Towns programme, for 2007-08.

Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how the additional responsibilities proposed to be granted to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority following the recommendations of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management will be funded.

Malcolm Wicks: The NDA and Government departments will be working within current spending round provisions until the next spending round period begins. The NDA currently funds the Nirex programme of work, so short term funding provisions require few changes. The CSR07 process provides the DTI (and other Departments involved in taking forward the next stages of repository concept development) with the opportunity to bid for funding to meet their policy priorities.

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much his Department paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The arrangements for employing temporary agency staff in my Department are delegated to local line management units. Managers must follow central guidance on the use of temporary agency staff, and where appropriate, use centrally agreed frameworks.
	We do not hold information centrally on costs of temporary agency staff. This information could be made available only at disproportionate cost.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Physical Violence: Schools

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many serious injuries to school teachers caused by physical violence in schools in  (a) England and  (b) each local education authority were reported to the Health and Safety Executive in each year from 2000 to 2006.

Anne McGuire: No fatal injuries involving acts of violence to schoolteachers in England were reported to HSE across the period 2000-01 to 2005-06.
	The following table 1 is in support of part  (a) of the question and details non-fatal injuries to schoolteachers involving acts of violence across England as a whole.
	Tables 2-7 in support of part  (b) of the question are set out in an annexe. Due to the size of the individual outputs I have placed a copy in the Library. These provide a breakdown, by local authorities in England, of non-fatal injuries to schoolteachers involving acts of violence.
	
		
			  Table 1: Non-fatal injuries to schoolteachers in England involving acts of violence reported to HSE, 2000-01 to 2005-06( 1) 
			   Non-fatal major injury  Over-3-day injury  All reported injuries 
			 2000-01 34 148 182 
			 2001-02 25 125 150 
			 2002-03 25 161 186 
			 2004-05 40 140 180 
			 2005-06(1) 30 191 221 
			 (1) Provisional

Debt Collection Agencies

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many debt collection agencies the Child Support Agency has used in the last five years; how much the agency paid to such companies in each year; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is the matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 25 January 2007:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many debt collection agencies the Child Support Agency has used in the last five years; how much the Agency paid to such companies in each year; and if he will make a statement.
	The Agency did not refer any debt to debt collection Agencies before August 2005. Since then the Agency has referred debt to three different debt collection agencies.
	The Agency's contracts with these agencies involve paying a fee for successful collection of debt, rather than paying for each referral. A total of £72,000 has been paid to these debt collection agencies for their services up to the 30th November 2006.
	I hope this information is helpful.

Departmental Staff

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many value for money exercises on the use of  (a) management consultants and  (b) professional advisers were conducted by his Department in each of the last five years for which information is available; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: Management consultants and some professional advisors are engaged via a specific framework agreement (known as CIPHER). The framework agreement itself was established following a competition process conducted in accordance with the EU Consolidated Procurement Directives. In addition, individual contracts let within the framework agreement are subject to a separate mini competition where all the suppliers within the relevant lot on the framework agreement are invited to bid. In this way DWP is assured that all exercises can demonstrate value for money. Professional advisers covered via the framework agreement are in the fields of HR, IT, procurement, finance and programme and project management, others such as legal and property advisers are not covered.
	In addition, the DWP internet audit unit are responsible for providing independent assurance on the procurement system processes, including compliance with the CIPHER framework. With regard to specific value for money (VfM) studies, over the last five years there was a review in 2006 covering the use of external resources, although VfM is a consideration in all internal audit reviews.
	Management information on the number of exercises is available with effect from April 2004, the date the CIPHER agreement went live, details available are as follows:
	
		
			   Management consultants  Professional advisers 
			 2004-05 117 161 
			 2005-06 121 283 
			 2006-07 (to end October) 57 160

Driving at Work

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  which projects on driving while at work are being prepared by the Health and Safety Executive; and what the timescale for implementation is of each;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with his ministerial colleagues in the Department for Transport on the implementation of projects for promoting safer driving while at work.

Anne McGuire: I will answer these two questions together.
	The former Minister for health and safety, Lord Hunt, and the Minister of State, Department for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for South Thanet (Dr. Ladyman) discussed safe driving whilst at work in November 2005 and 2006. Officials of the Health and Safety Executive and the Department for Transport are also in regular contact about measures to promote safer driving whilst at work.
	HSE has a number of initiatives, including a new three-year project with Transport for London and the Metropolitan Police aimed at improving driver safety in freight transport by road and a three year programme of work aimed at moving goods safely in workplaces. HSE also continues to encourage employers to use the guide "Driving at Work", as appropriate.

Health and Safety Inspections

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what meetings he has had with the members of the board of the Health and Safety Executive to discuss the frequency of inspections in places of higher education in each of the last five years.

Anne McGuire: No DWP Ministers have had meetings with senior officials of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to discuss this specific issue during the last five years. Ministers do however meet regularly with the chief executive of HSE to discuss workplace health and safety issues.

Health and Safety Inspections

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints were received from each university by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in each of the last five years; and how many  (a) formal letters were sent and  (b) Improvement Notices were issued by the HSE in connection with such complaints in this period.

Anne McGuire: 270 complaints were received from universities over the last five years. The following table shows the breakdown by institution and by year. Of these, one complaint led to enforcement action through an improvement notice.
	
		
			  Institution  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  Grand total 
			 Aberdeen university Research and Industrial Services — — — — — 1 1 
			 American Intercontinental university — 1 — — — — 1 
			 Anglia polytechnic university 3 1 1 1 — — 6 
			 Aston university 1 — 1 1 — — 3 
			 Bournemouth university — — — — 1  1 
			 Brunei university — — — 1 — — 1 
			 Buckinghamshire Chilterns university college 1 — — — — — 1 
			 Cambridge university press — — — 1 — — 1 
			 Canterbury Christ Church university college — 1 — — — — 1 
			 Cardiff university — —— — 2 3 1 6 
			 De Montfort university — — 1 1 2 3 7 
			 Heriot Watt university 1 — — 1 — — 2 
			 Kingston university — — — 1 — 1 2 
			 Leeds metropolitan university — — — — 2 — 2 
			 Liverpool Hope university college — — — 1 — 1 2 
			 Liverpool John Moores university — — — 1 — — 1 
			 London metropolitan university 1 — — — 1 — 2 
			 Loughborough university — — — 1 — — 1 
			 Manchester metropolitan university 3 2 2 — 2 — 9 
			 Middlesex university 1 — 1 — — — 2 
			 Napier university 1 — — — — — 1 
			 Nottingham Trent university 1 1 — 1 — 1 4 
			 Oxford Brookes university — — — — 2 — 2 
			 Queen Margaret university college 2 — — — — — 2 
			 Robert Gordon university — — 2 — 1 — 3 
			 Roehampton university of Surrey — — — — — 1 1 
			 Sheffield Hallam university — — 1 — — — 1 
			 St. Marys university college — 1 — — — — 1 
			 Staffordshire university 3 — — — 1 1 5 
			 Thames Valley university — — — — 2 — 2 
			 The open university — — 2 — — — 2 
			 The University of Leeds 1 1 — 1 — — 3 
			 The university of Newcastle Upon Tyne 1 1 1 1 2 1 7 
			 Unisecure Ltd: university of Hert — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University college Chichester 1 — — — — — 1 
			 University college for the Creative Arts — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University college London — — — 1 1 — 2 
			 University college Northampton — — 1 — — — 1 
			 University college of Wales—Aberystwyth — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University college of Wales Swansea — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University of Aberdeen 1 2 2 — — — 5 
			 University of Bath 1 1 1 — 1 — 4 
			 University of Birmingham 1 1 3 — — 2 7 
			 University of Bradford 1 — — 2 1 — 4 
			 University of Bristol 2 1 — — 3 — 6 
			 University of Cambridge — 3 2 — — — 5 
			 University of Central England in Birmingham 1 — 1 — — 2 4 
			 University of Central Lancashire — — 1 2 3 — 6 
			 University of Coventry — — 1 — 1 1 3 
			 University of Dundee — — — — 1 — 1 
			 University of Durham — — — — — 1 1 
			 University of East Anglia — — — 1 — 1 2 
			 University of East London — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University of Edinburgh 1 2 — — — — 3 
			 University of Essex — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University of Exeter 1 — — — — 1 2 
			 University of Glasgow 1 1 1 1 — — 4 
			 University of Gloucestershire — — 1 — — — 1 
			 University of Hertfordshire 1 — — — — — 1 
			 University of Hull — — — — 1 1 2 
			 University of Keele — 1 — — — — 1 
			 University of Kingston — — — — — 1 1 
			 University of Lancaster — — 1 — — — 1 
			 University of Leicester — — — — 1 — 1 
			 University of Liverpool 2 1 — — — — 3 
			 University of London — 1 1 1 1 1 5 
			 University of Luton 1 — 1 — — — 2 
			 University of Manchester — 2 2 — — — 4 
			 University of Manchester Institute of Science and In 1 1 — — — — 2 
			 University of Newcastle Upon Tyne — — — — — 1 1 
			 University of Northumbria at Newcastle — — — 2 1 — 3 
			 University of Nottingham — — 1 1 — 1 3 
			 University of Oxford 1 1 — — 1 — 3 
			 University of Paisley 1 1 1  1  4 
			 University of Plymouth 1 1 — — — — 2 
			 University of Portsmouth — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University of Reading 1 2 — 4 — — 7 
			 University of Salford — 3 2 — — — 5 
			 University of Sheffield — 2 — — — — 2 
			 University of Southampton — 2 1 — — — 3 
			 University of St. Andrews — — — 1 — — 1 
			 University of Stirling 1 — — 1 — — 2 
			 University of Strathclyde 1 1 — — — 1 3 
			 University of Sunderland 1 — 2 2 — — 5 
			 University of Surrey — 2 — — — — 2 
			 (University of Sussex at Brighton 1 1 — — — — 2 
			 (University of Teesside 1 — — — — — 1 
			 University of the Arts London 1 — — 1 — — 2 
			 University of the West of England 3 — — — 3 — 6 
			 University of Wales—Lampeter — 1 — — — — 1 
			 University of Wales college Newport — — — — — 2 2 
			 University of Wales college of Cardiff 3 — — 2 2 — 7 
			 University of Wales Institute Cardiff — — 1  1 — 2 
			 University of Wales, Bangor 1  1 2 2 1 7 
			 University of Warwick 1 1 — — 1 — 3 
			 University of Westminster 2 — — — — 1 3 
			 University of Wolverhampton 2 3 — — — 1 6 
			 University of Wolverhampton Students Union — — — — 1 — 1 
			 University of York — 2 1 — — — 3 
			 Grand total 58 49 41 46 46 30 270 
		
	
	 Background
	1. The one complaint that led to action by HSE Inspectors, was the issuing of an improvement notice to De Montfort University, which may have significance given the questioner's constituency. The notice was issued on 9 June 2006; it was deemed complied with on 9 November 2006. The complaint was in respect of the lack of provision for Display Screen Equipment Assessments within the University
	2. HSE's policy is to investigate every complaint received however there are certain exceptions, for example where the complainant wishes to remain anonymous or where they have not already taken the matter up with their employer or Trade Union (if appropriate)
	3. In addition and exceptionally, HSE may also decide that further investigation is not warranted as there are no simple precautions to implement, for example.

Health and Safety Inspections

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many formal letters of improvement notice issued by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to each university have  (a) led to actions satisfying the requirement of the HSE and  (b) remain unresolved in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The Health and Safety Executive has issued 51 improvement notices to universities during the last five years. All have been resolved except one, which has been granted an extension for compliance to 31 January 2007.
	The breakdown by university, by year, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Institution  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  Grand  total 
			 Aston University — — — 1 1 2 4 
			 
			 De Montfort University 1  1 1  1 4 
			 
			 Heriot Watt University — — 1 — — — 1 
			 
			 Loughborough University (Short Course Centre) Ltd — — — 1 — — 1 
			 
			 Manchester Metropolitan University — 1 — 1 — — 2 
			 
			 Nottingham Trent University — — — 1 — — 1 
			 
			 Royal Holloway, University of London — — — — 1 — 1 
			 
			 The Open University — — — 2 — — 2 
			 
			 The University of Leeds — — — 1 — — 1 
			 
			 The University of Manchester — 1 — — — — 1 
			 
			 University of Bath — 2 — — — — 2 
			 
			 University of Birmingham — — — — 1 — 1 
			 
			 University of Bristol 2 — — — — — 2 
			 
			 University of Buckingham — — — 3 — — 3 
			 
			 University of Cambridge 1 — — — — 1 2 
			 
			 University of Central England in Birmingham — — — — — 1 1 
			 
			 University of Central Lancashire — — — 1 — — 1 
			 
			 University of Lancaster — — 1 — 1 — 2 
			 
			 University of Leicester — 1 — — — — 1 
			 
			 University of Lincoln — — 1 — — 2 3 
			 University of Liverpool — 1 1 — — — 2 
			 
			 University of London — 1 — — — — 1 
			 
			 University of Luton — — — — — 3 3 
			 
			 University of Northumbria at Newcastle — — — 1 — — 1 
			 
			 University of Nottingham — — 1 — — — 1 
			 
			 University of Salford — — — 2 — — 2 
			 
			 University of Southampton — — 1 1 — — 2 
			 
			 University of Stirling 1 — — — — — 1 
			 
			 University of the Arts London 1 — — — — — 1 
			 
			 University of Warwick — — — — — 1 1 
			 
			 Grand total 6 7 7 16 4 11 51 
		
	
	HSE inspectors have a range of tools at their disposal to help secure compliance with the law, and to ensure a proportionate response to criminal offences. Inspectors may offer duty holders information, and advice, both face to face and in writing. This may include warning a duty holder that in the opinion of the inspector, they are failing to comply with the law. Where appropriate, inspectors may also serve improvement and prohibition notices, or they may prosecute. The choice of enforcement action is proportionate to the breach.
	Improvement notices are served when in the opinion of the inspector an offence has been committed, but which, in the opinion of the inspector, can be remedied within a given timescale.
	HSE's enforcement policy is normally to prosecute those who fail to comply with an improvement notice. However, there are occasions when it is not appropriate to prosecute and no further action is taken in relation to the notice. This would normally occur where prosecution is not in the public interest (for example, the client has ceased trading or, they have done enough work to essentially comply but there may be a minor deficiency which does not give rise to a health and safety risk). However, it should be noted that HSE will continue to monitor and enforce health and safety standards in these cases.

Health and Safety Inspections

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what representations he has received from  (a) employees and  (b) employee organisations within the higher education sector on (i) the frequency and effectiveness of inspections by health and safety executive (HSE) inspectors and (ii) the level of unresolved complaints to the HSE about higher education institutions.

Anne McGuire: No DWP Ministers have received such representations during the last five years. However, if organisations or individuals have concerns they are welcome to write to the HSE.
	 Background:
	1. In marshalling HSE's inspection resource, HSE seeks to target poor performers. The key criteria in establishing the frequency of inspections are the risks presented by particular duty holders, premises or industries and the ability and willingness of duty holders to manage those risks. Where the risk is low and duty holders' ability high, visits are less frequent than where the risk is high and duty holders are failing to manage those risks. In targeting the inspection resource in this way, HSE believes it has the greatest impact on reducing work-related deaths, injuries and ill-health.
	2. In 2003, HSE ceased to set targets for the number of inspection contacts. Such targets encouraged short visits to low risk places, whereas the Health and Safety Commission's strategy for workplace health and safety 2010 sought a sharper focus on injury and ill-health priorities, and more substantial contacts with a carefully selected range of duty holders. Over the last five years or so, the actual time HSE inspectors have spent interacting with and encouraging duty holders has increased by 23 per cent.
	3. Important as inspection is, the frequency of inspections is not a particularly useful metric. The Health and Safety Commission's strategy fully recognises the importance of inspection, and the threat of enforcement, as a powerful motivator for improved standards. But to be most effective, they need to sit alongside other interventions, such as encouraging partnership working, communications, and so on.
	 Inspection in Higher Education
	4. HSE sees higher education as a mature sector. The risks are for the most part well known (including those associated with laboratory work with hazardous chemicals), well understood, well managed and there are well-established networks and institutions for their management. In line with the approach set out in paras 1-3 above, HSE has therefore no general proactive inspection programme.
	5. However, this year, some proactive inspection will take place examining higher education institution's management of work-related stress—HSE Inspectors will visit about 120 universities. Work related stress is one of the priority topics identified in the Commissions strategy for workplace health and safety 2010
	6. This inspection activity follows a series of seminars in the autumn of 2006, to which all higher education institutions were invited—and which nearly 50 per cent. of all institutions attended—designed to equip institutions with knowledge and skills to tackle work-related stress through the use of HSE's Stress Management Standards. This programme of inspection will look at whether the Management Standards (or any equivalent approach) is being used, or if it is, assist in ensuring action is maintained.
	7. A second programme of inspection activity will look at the management of slipping and tripping hazards—a hazard the sector recognises as a particular issue—another of the Commission's priority topics. These inspections will follow a series of nationwide seminars run by HSE, in partnership with the sector, which will equip attendees with the knowledge and skills to manage slips and trips.

Incapacity Benefit

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in each local authority ward in Peterborough constituency received incapacity benefit in each year since its introduction.

Anne McGuire: The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance claimants by local authority ward in Peterborough at the dates shown—by 2003 ward boundaries 
			   May 
			   2006  2005  2004  2003  2002  2001  2000 
			 Barnack 40 40 40 50 35 35 35 
			 Bretton North 485 485 490 490 480 455 420 
			 Bretton South 130 130 130 120 115 110 110 
			 Central 570 595 600 650 630 630 635 
			 Dogsthorpe 600 635 595 605 605 590 565 
			 East 555 565 570 535 560 555 545 
			 Eye and Thorney 190 180 175 175 180 160 165 
			 Fletton 395 385 340 350 350 350 325 
			 Glinton and Wittering 105 105 90 90 105 100 100 
			 Newborough 60 70 75 75 75 70 70 
			 North 355 335 325 315 310 280 275 
			 Northborough 40 40 45 50 40 45 50 
			 Orton Longueville 545 525 520 510 510 475 455 
			 Orton Waterville 245 230 240 260 250 250 240 
			 Orton with Hampton 145 145 130 110 105 110 90 
			 Park 270 260 255 255 275 265 255 
			 Paston 460 470 455 450 455 425 400 
			 Ravensthorpe 425 420 445 430 420 390 395 
			 Stanground Central 405 395 370 370 350 355 335 
			 Stanground East 130 140 135 130 120 120 115 
			 Walton 240 240 225 230 225 220 225 
			 Werrington North 265 270 265 265 275 265 265 
			 Werrington South 165 180 175 170 165 175 165 
			 West 240 230 225 230 240 255 225 
			  Notes: 1. All figures supplied have been rounded to protect the confidentiality of claimants. 2. All data represent a snapshot in time of claimants on the computer system, and will therefore exclude a very small number of cases that are held clerically. 3. Areas have been defined by matching claimants' postcodes recorded on the computer systems to the look-up list provided. Any claimants with missing, partial or incorrect postcodes may be excluded. 4. Ward level data are not available prior to August 1999.  Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data

Legal Advice

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent by the Department on external legal advice in each of the past five years.

Anne McGuire: Although the Department records expenditure incurred on professional services it does not specifically identify the total amount spent on external legal advice. However, external legal advice is purchased by the Department's own lawyers can be identified and the cost of this is as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2001-02 3.753 
			 2002-03 4.023 
			 2003-04 3.940 
			 2004-05 4.595 
			 2005-06 5.084

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Cabinet Office Grants

Oliver Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if she will list the grants the Cabinet Office awarded in 2005-06, broken down by recipient.

Hilary Armstrong: In 2005-06 the Cabinet Office awarded grants to the bodies shown in the table.
	
		
			   Grants 
			 BBC Accounts Receivable Grants to Public Corporation 
			 Civil Service Benevolent Fund Grants to CS bodies 
			 Civil Service Retirement Fellowship Grants to CS bodies 
			 Civil Service Sports Council Grants to CS bodies 
			 Coutts Information Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Coventry university Civil Defence Grants 
			 Dandy Booksellers Public Access Scheme Library 
			 HSE Books Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Latitude Public Access Scheme Library 
			 London Fire and Emergency Planning Civil Defence Grants 
			 MacMillan Distribution Ltd. Public Access Scheme Library 
			 The Chequers Estate Other grants 
			 The Stationery Office Books Other grants/Public Access Braille Scheme 
			 Whitehall and Industry Group Grants to Private Sector/other grants 
			 Windsor Leadership Trust Grants to Private Sector 
			 Silver and Cream Ltd. Grants to Private Sector 
			 Buckinghamshire county council Civil Defence Grants 
			 Warrington borough council Civil Defence Grants 
			 Cheshire county council Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Plymouth city council Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Essex county council Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Staffordshire county council Civil Defence Grants 
			 Sheffield city council Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Coventry city council Civil Defence Grants 
			 London borough of Camden Civil Defence Grants 
			 Royal B Kensington and Chelsea Public Access Scheme Library 
			 London borough of Bromley Civil Defence Grants 
			 London borough of Ealing Civil Defence Grants 
			 London borough of Hounslow Civil Defence Grants 
			 Aberdeen city council Public Access Scheme Library 
			 Newport county borough council Civil Defence Grants

Departmental Fixed Assets

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which fixed assets her Department sold for more than £10,000 in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06; and what the (i) sale value, (ii) purchaser and (iii) date of sale was of each asset.

Hilary Armstrong: The Department has not sold any fixed assets in this period.

Government Auctions

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster where her Department publishes information about Government auctions which it arranges or to which it contributes in  (a) Blackpool,  (b) Lancashire and  (c) the North West; and when the next such auction will take place in each area.

Hilary Armstrong: The Cabinet Office has not held any such auctions and there are no plans to do so.

Parliamentary Questions

Theresa May: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many written parliamentary questions to her Department in the 2005-06 session were answered with a reply that it had not been possible to reply before Prorogation.

Hilary Armstrong: 15 parliamentary questions were answered with a reply stating that it had not been possible to reply before Prorogation in the 2005-06 session.

TREASURY

Financial Advice

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the planned review of the provision of generic financial advice to the public.

Edward Balls: Our goal is to ensure that all adults can have access to high-quality generic financial advice to help them to engage with their financial affairs. The Government have asked Otto Thoresen, chief executive of AEGON UK to lead a feasibility study to design a national approach to generic financial advice. The study will report to HMT Ministers at the end of this year.

Public Sector Debt

Brooks Newmark: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the level of public sector net debt if unfunded public sector pension liabilities are included.

Stephen Timms: Public sector net debt is measured by means of National Accounts aggregates compiled by the independent Office for National Statistics using internationally accepted methodology. The Government use this agreed methodology, which does not include unfunded public sector pension liabilities.

Education Funding

Andrew MacKay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on the level of funding for the school capital programme for the next three years announced in the 2006 pre-Budget report.

Stephen Timms: Treasury Ministers have regular discussions with Ministers at the Department for Education and Skills on a range of issues, including school capital programmes. The 2006 pre-Budget report announced that capital investment in education will rise to £10.2 billion in 2010-11, with additional investment of £250 million, £750 million and £1,850 million over the years 2008-09 to 2010-11—equivalent to annual average real growth of 4.1 per cent. a year.

Manufacturing

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many jobs there were in manufacturing in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2006.

John Healey: The UK economy is restructuring and the fall in relative share of manufacturing is a common feature of all advanced economies. The fall in manufacturing jobs has been more than balanced by a growth of 3.77 million jobs in other sectors.

Financial Education

Mark Todd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the Government's strategy to improve financial education and public knowledge of basic financial products.

Edward Balls: The Government launched their long-term approach for financial capability on 15 January. It will improve information and advice for young people, promote opportunities for children to learn about money, and signpost to information and advice for parents through extended schools and Sure Start children's centres. It will also give financial education a secure place on the educational agenda and issue revised curriculum guidance, promote the Child Trust Fund as a tool for teaching financial education, and integrate financial education into basic skills learning by promoting the use of financial education as a route to literacy and numeracy skills. The Government have also asked Otto Thoresen, Chief Executive of AEGON UK to lead a feasibility study to design a national approach to generic financial advice.

Millennium Development Goals

Christine Russell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contribution his Department is making to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal for every child to receive a primary education.

Edward Balls: In April 2006, the Chancellor and Secretary of State for International Development announced a UK commitment to spend at least £8.5 billion on aid for education over the next 10 years, entering into 10 year agreements to help finance poor countries' education plans.
	HM treasury has been working closely with DfID and other Government Departments to ensure that primary education is high on the international agenda.
	While some progress has been made globally over the past decade, universal primary education will not be achieved by 2015, unless we take urgent action. Every day almost 80 million primary school aged children do not go to school.
	The UK has led the way by making a long-term commitment, demonstrating the high priority we place on this issue. We will now continue to urge other donors to deliver on their 2005 promises by providing long-term predictable financing for education.
	The Chancellor has called for a high level international conference to take forward this agenda, which the European commission will host in Brussels in April. This will bring together Ministers from EU, G8 and developing countries, NGOs and opinion-formers. It will be an opportunity for the international community to demonstrate its commitment to achieving the education MDGs and making faster progress in this area.

Air Passenger Duty

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will offset the revenue resulting from the increase of Air Passenger Duty in February with an equal reduction in revenue elsewhere in the tax system.

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to offset the increase in Air Passenger Duty in February with a reduction in revenue elsewhere in the tax system.

John Healey: The changes to Air Passenger Duty will secure resources in the coming spending round for our priorities such as public transport and the environment.

Nuclear Defence

Alan Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Government Departments have made submissions for funding for expenditure related to nuclear defence in the context of the comprehensive spending review.

Stephen Timms: The White Paper, 'The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent', published in December 2006, set out that decisions on the level of investment in nuclear and conventional capability will be taken in the Comprehensive Spending Review, the results of which will be announced later this year. Departmental submissions on a range of spending issues will be considered in the CSR and the outcomes published in due course.

Environmental Taxes

Michael Jack: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which methodologies his Department uses to evaluate the effectiveness of environmental taxes; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: An update on the impact of the environmental taxes is included in the Budget and pre-Budget report. This covers analysis and summaries of data received from a range of sources, including:
	an independent evaluation of the impact of the climate change levy, published at Budget 2005;
	data on virgin aggregate sales and on the use of recycled aggregate;
	data on waste arisings and waste sent to landfill;
	reports and studies that cover the energy, waste and aggregate/construction sectors;
	formal and informal discussions with industry representative bodies and Government stakeholders; and
	information from Revenue and Customs assurance visits.

Trade Balance

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the UK's trade balance is; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The trade in goods and services deficit in 2005 was £44.6 billion or 3.6 per cent of GDP. The UK's external position remains healthy, with a current account deficit of 2.4 per cent. of GDP in 2005, compared with a deficit of over 5 per cent. in 1989.

Exports

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact of the increase in interest rates on exports.

John Healey: Demand for UK exports is driven predominantly by world trade growth and competitiveness. The impact of changes in UK interest rates will be small and would be very difficult to quantify.

New Deal

George Mudie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the New Deal; and what further steps he plans to take to increase employment levels.

John Healey: Since 1998, the New Deal has helped over 1.6 million people to find jobs, and contributed to a fall in the number of young people claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than six months from over 174,000 in April 1997 to 56,400 in January 2007. Independent research has shown the New Deal for young people's positive impact on the economy, with estimated benefits to the economy of up to £500 million a year.

Departmental Staff

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost of employing agency workers was in  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies in each of the last three years; and how many were employed in each such year.

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employment agencies were employed by his Department and each of the boards and agencies reporting to his Department in each of the last five years; and how much was spent on agency services in each of those years.

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information on expenditure on agency workers that is available without incurring disproportionate cost is as follows:
	
		
			  Expenditure on agency workers 
			  £000 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 HM Treasury (1)— 1,467 1,360 909 864 
			 HM Revenue and Customs (1)— (1)— 3,838 4,567 4,239 
			 Royal Mint (1)— (1)— 0 0 0 
			 National Savings and Investments (1)— (1)— 550 380 450 
			 Office for National Statistics (1)— (1)— 1,607 2,467 1,376 
			 Government Actuary's Department 27 24 17 10 3 
			 Office of Government Commerce 733 851 819 710 1,087 
			 OGC.buying.solutions (1)— (1)— (1)— 158 230 
			 Debt Management Office (1)— 13 20 71 390 
			 Valuation Office Agency (1)— (1)— (1)— 71 312 
			 (1) Information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. 
		
	
	Information on the number of agency workers is generally not recorded centrally and so could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Royal Mint had one agency worker in 2003-04 (expenditure on this agency worker was £234, but has been rounded to zero in the table) and none in 2005-05 or 2005-06; The Office for National Statistics had 152, 233 and 130 agency workers in 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 respectively; the Office of Government Commerce had 47 and 49 agency workers in 2004-05 and 2005-06 respectively; and OGC.buying.solutions had 50 agency workers in 2004-05 and 59 in 2005-06.
	Information on the number of agencies used has generally been available within the cost threshold only where a framework contract with a list of approved suppliers is in place.
	
		
			  Number of employment agencies used 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 HM Treasury (1)— (1)— (1)— 6 6 
			 HM Revenue and Customs (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 15 
			 Royal Mint 2 1 1 0 0 
			 National Savings and Investments (1)— (1)— (1)— 12 14 
			 Government Actuary's Department 3 1 2 2 1 
			 Office of Government Commerce 14 17 17 18 18 
			 Debt Management Office (1)— 2 1 5 8 
			 Valuation Office Agency (1)— (1)— (1)— (1)— 3 
			 (1) Information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Insurance Policies

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his answer of 20 November 2006,  Official Report, column 16W, on insurance policies, from whom he has received representations regarding non-advised insurance sales.

Edward Balls: The Treasury has received representations regarding non-advised insurance sales from Members of Parliament on behalf of constituents and from one UK life insurance broker.

Money Laundering

Tony Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which categories of people in the UK are covered by the Third EU Money Laundering Directive on Politically Exposed Persons.

Edward Balls: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 14 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1424W, on the effect of Commission Directives 2005/60/EC and 2006/70/EC.

Parliamentary Questions

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will reply to question 113849, on the World Economic Forum, tabled by the hon. Member for Cotswold on 5 January 2007.

Edward Balls: I have already done so.

Pensions

Gregory Barker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of stakeholder pensions in each of the next 20 years.

Edward Balls: Stakeholder pensions are offered by financial services firms on a commercial basis. The Government have set out standards in legislation which commercial providers must meet in order to use the stakeholder pension brand but it does not fund their provision.

Portland Trust

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what input the Portland Trust has made to the programmes of visits by Treasury officials and Ministers to the Middle East.

Edward Balls: Treasury Ministers and officials have consulted a wide range of stakeholders about visits to the Middle East. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's policy to provide the details of such discussions.

Savings Gateway Scheme

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of those who began saving with the Savings Gateway Scheme completed the scheme and were given the bonus in each year since its launch.

Edward Balls: In the first Saving Gateway pilot, 1,478 accounts were opened. The final evaluation report, published alongside Budget 2005, confirms that matching can encourage genuinely new savers and new saving. Overall, over half of the participants achieved the maximum match of £375 and 41 per cent. of participants were still saving three or more months after the pilot finished.

Youth Unemployment: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many young people aged 16 to 19 years of age resident in the Peterborough city council area were not in employment, education or training as at  (a) 31 December 2006,  (b) 31 December 2005 and  (c) 31 December 2004; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 25 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about young people not in employment, education or training. (110735)
	The number of people aged 16 to 19, resident in the Peterborough City Council area, who were not in full-time education, employment or training, from the Annual Population Survey, was 1,500 for the 12 months ending in December 2004 and 1,500 for the 12 months ending in December 2005. Data for 12 months ending in December 2006 will be available in June 2007.
	As these estimates are for a subset of the population in a small geographical area, they are based on very small sample sizes, and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty. In this case, the sample sizes are not sufficient to give an accurate estimate of even the direction of the change over the period.

Youth Unemployment: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the rate of youth unemployment was in the Peterborough constituency in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 25 January 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the rate of youth unemployment was in the Peterborough constituency in each year since 2001. (110736)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment for parliamentary constituencies from the annual local area Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation definitions.
	Table 1, attached, shows the numbers of unemployed, aged 16 to 24, resident in the Peterborough constituency, for the 12 months ending in February from 2001 to 2004, from the annual local area LFS and for the 12 months ending in March 2005 and 2006, from the APS. The corresponding unemployment rates are defined as the number of unemployed expressed as a percentage of the economically active population in the relevant age group.
	As these estimates are for a subset of the population in a small geographical area, they are based on very small sample sizes, and are therefore subject to large margins of uncertainty. In this case, the sample sizes are not sufficient to give an accurate estimate of even the direction of the change over the period.
	ONS also compiles statistics for local areas of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA). Table 2, attached, shows the annual average number of people aged 18 to 24, resident in the Peterborough constituency, claiming JSA from 2001 to 2006.
	
		
			  Table 1: Unemployed persons, aged 16 to 24 resident in the Peterborough constituency 
			  Thousand 
			  12 months ending:  Level  Rate( 1)  (percentage) 
			 February 2001 1 8.0 
			 February 2002 1 15.5 
			 February 2003 1 10.7 
			 February 2004 1 10.9 
			 March 2005 1 10.9 
			 March 2006 1 14.1 
			 (1) Unemployed as a percentage of the economically active population.  Notes: 1. Estimates are subject to random variability. 2. Changes in the estimates over time should be treated with particular caution.  Source: Annual local area Labour Force Survey; Annual Population survey. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Annual average number of claimants of jobseeker's allowance aged 18 to 24 resident in the Peterborough constituency 
			   Number 
			 2001 455 
			 2002 435 
			 2003 530 
			 2004 510 
			 2005 585 
			 2006 655 
			  Notes: 1. Claimant count data by age includes computerised claims only. 2. Dataset rounded to the nearest 5.  Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative data.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the provision of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

Hilary Benn: Since 2000 DFID has provided over £390 million in development assistance to Afghanistan. DFID has committed to spend a further £330 million over the next three years, with £102 million in 2006-07 and at least £107 million in 2007-08.
	In 2000-01 and 2001-02 the funding was entirely humanitarian?a total of £57 million was spent through NGOs and multilateral such as the World Food Programme (WFP), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and United National High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). In line with Afghanistan's needs, DFID humanitarian funding has gradually decreased from £44 million in 2001-02 to £1.3 million this year (2006-07). Funding this year has been channelled towards the drought in the North and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Helmand.
	The drought in Afghanistan is predominantly in the northern areas and is affecting 2.5 million people. The Government of Afghanistan and the UN jointly launched an appeal in October. DFID has contributed £1 million towards the UN appeal for drought mitigation. This will be used for water and sanitation projects in the most affected areas. The money will be used to fund NGOs working with the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD), the main government partner of the UN drought appeal.
	DFID has also provided assistance to IDPs in Helmand. The UN has estimated that around 2,800 families have been displaced in Helmand. UK officials are monitoring the situation. We are currently assured that basic needs are being met. The UK has provided funding (£30,000) for food aid and essential items like soap and blankets for these displaced families.
	More broadly, UNHCR, WFP and local implementing partners continue to work on humanitarian programmes in Afghanistan providing basic service such as shelter units, water and sanitation, healthcare and education facilities.

Agricultural Research Institutions

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which international agricultural research institutions received funding from his Department in each year between 2000-01 and 2005-06; how much funding was provided in each case; and which projects were facilitated by this funding.

Gareth Thomas: The assistance that DFID has provided centrally to international agriculture centres during the period 2000-01-2005-06 is detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  Table of core and project funding received by international agricultural research institutions from DFID between 2000-01 and 2005-06 
			 £ 
			   Type of funding  Financial year 
			  Name of institution/  Name of project  Core  2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			  Bioversity International (formerly International Plant Genetic Resources Institute) Core 600,000 650,000 650,000 650,000 910,000 910,000 
			 
			  International Service for National Agricultural Research (now part of IFPRI) Core 160,000 180,000 180,000 430,000 290,000 290,000 
			 
			  International Livestock Research Institute Core 700,000 730,000 630,000 630,000 758,000 720,000 
			 Fodder Initiative Project — — 100,000 420,000 480,000 360,000 
			 Fodder Workshops  — 55,000 — — — — 
			 Livestock Mapping Workshops  33,750 33,750 — — — — 
			 
			  Centre For International Forestry Research Core — — — — 200,000 600,000 
			 NRRD Project Support Project 382,000 395,000 — — — — 
			 Project Support Funding Project — — 363,802 411,198 400,000 — 
			 
			  The International Centre For Agricultural Research In The Dry Areas Pest Core 510,000 560,000 560,000 560,000 780,000 780,000 
			 Integrated Pest Management of Sunn In West Asia Project — 242,660 230,200 231,588 59,762 — 
			 
			  International Crops Research Institute For The Semi Arid Tropics Core 720,000 975,000 750,000 750,000 1,200,000 1,200,000 
			 Conference on Nitrogen Fixation Project — — 10,000 — — — 
			 
			  West Africa Rice Development Association  180,000 230,000 230,000 230,000 425,000 350,000 
			 
			  International Institute Of Tropical Agriculture Core 380,000 410,000 410,000 410,000 570,000 570,000 
			 Weed Management Project — 190,200 240,010 262,540 50,145 — 
			 Overcoming Major Constraints To Conventional Yam breeding Project 85,723 80,038 — — — — 
			 Microbal Control Of Termites Africa Project 88,464 — — — — — 
			 
			  International Water Management Institute. Core — — — — 300,000 600,000 
			 Water And Food Challenge Programme Project — — — — 2,500,000 2,500,000 
			 Small holder water management systems Project 22,855 45,710 58,580 — — — 
			 Strengthening Underutised Crops Project — — — — 68,560 66,110 
			 Water Short Basins In South Africa Project 37,500 — — — — — 
			 
			  World Fish Core — — — — 170,000 440,000 
			 Mekong Project Project — — 59,803 151,409 133,003 — 
			 ICLARM IITA Project Project 162,233 199,126 194,001 194,000 197,001 11,661 
			 Caribbean Marine Protected Areas Project 200,000 100,000 — — — — 
			 Nile Talipia Project Project — 85,450 87,750 86,750 36,000 — 
			 Silver Barb in South East Asia Project 800 28,650 — — — — 
			 Associate Professional Officer for Mekong Project Project — — 15,996 — — — 
			 Women In Fisheries Seminar Project — 10,000 — — — — 
			 
			  International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre Core 530,000 580,000 800,000 770,000 1,090,000 860,000 
			 Farmers Dialogue Project — — — — — 85,000 
			 Challenge Programme Crop Diversity Project — — — — 2,500,000 2,500,000 
			 
			  Global Forum on Agricultural Research  — — — — — — 
			 Stakeholders Analysis For Effective Partnerships Project — — — — 16,500 — 
			 
			  International Centre for Development Orientated Research In Agriculture Core 117,000 108,300 161,700 140,000 250,000 250,000 
			 
			  International Centre of Tropical Agriculture Core 410,000 225,000 450,000 450,000 720,000 720,000 
			 High Value Products Workshop Project — — — — — 22,200 
			 Soil Water Nutrient Management Project 70,000 99,620 179,200 72,800 — — 
			 Conference On Social Research Project — — 6,500 — — — 
			 Bolivia Initiative Project — — 105,100 107,500 106,300 — 
			 Whtefly Project Project — — — — — 540,904 
			 Research Gender Analysis Project — — — — — 126,039 
			 
			  International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Core 160,000 190,000 190,000 190,000 310,000 310,000 
			 Public And Private Partnership Project — — — — 59,180 — 
			 Harvest Plus Challenge Programme Project — — — — 500,000 500,000 
			 
			  International Rice Research Institute  760,000 790,000 750,000 750,000 1,120,000 1,120,000 
			 
			  Forum for Agricultural Research In Africa  — — — — — — 
			 Sub-Saharan African Challenge Programme Project — — — — 500,000 140,000 
			 
			 International Potato Centre  400,000 656,128 430,000 430,000 640,000 640,000 
			 Diseases of Potatoes  — — 286,830 272,154 — — 
			 
			  World Vegetable Centre  — — — — 300,000 300,000 
			 Development Of an Pest management Strategy Project 92,935 52,103 60,717 75,695 134,037 79,375 
			 Mungbean In Cereal Fallows in Indo Gangetic Plants Project — — 154,600 145,400 — — 
			 Sustainable Management of Tomato Project 76,439 46,806 — — — — 
			 Improving Food Security In Sub Saharan Africa Project 39,500 19,000 — — — — 
			 Promotion of Mungbean Research Project 28,400 — — — — — 
			79,375 
			  International Network Bamboo Ratten Project  — — — — — — 
			 Phase 1 Project — — 20,000 40,000 20,000 — 
			 Phase 2 Project — — — — — 35,934 
			 
			  International Foundation For Science Core — — — — 75,000 75,000 
			 
			  International Centre For Research In Agroforestry Core 200,000 600,000 
			 Poverty Reduction In Rural Communities Project 391,696 360,867 375,000 400,000 400,000  
			 
			  Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau International  — — — — — — 
			 Partnership Facility Project 75,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 300,000 350,000 
			 Rice Wheat Project — — 62,500 125,000 125,000 30,443 
			 Global Plant Clinic Project — — — — — 250,000 
			 World Bank Assessment Project — — — — — 105,110 
			 
			 Total  7,414,295 8,428,408 8,952,289 9,586,034 18,893,488 19,037,776 
		
	
	
		
			  Name of institution/  Name of project  Type of funding  Period of attributed core funding  Period of unrestricted core funding  Names of projects funded under period of attributed core funding 
			  Bioversity International (formerly International Plant Genetic Resources Institute) Core 2000-04 2004-06 Plant Genetic resource programme in Sub Saharan Africa Promoting Sustainable Conservation And Use of Coconut Genetic Resources Ex Situ Conservation Technologies And Strategies Human And Policy Dimensions Of Genetic Resources Support To Regional Musa Programmes 
			  
			  International Service for National Agricultural Research (now part of IFPRI) Core 2000-04 2004-06 Globalisation And Governance (2003-04 includes £250,000 location costs) Governance Of Agricultural Research 
			  
			  International Livestock Research Institute Core 2000-04 2004-06 Development And Application Of Disease Resistant Livestock Developing and Delivery Of Improved Vaccines And Diagnostics 
			 Fodder Initiative Project
			 Fodder Workshops Project
			 Livestock Mapping Workshops Project
			  
			  Centre For International Forestry Research Core  2004-06  
			 NRRD Project Support Project
			 Project Support Funding Project
			  
			  The International Centre For Agricultural Research In The Dry Areas Pest Core 2000-04 2004-06 Land Management And Soil Conservation Food Legume Germplasm Improvement For Increased Systems Productivity 
			 Integrated Pest Management of Sunn In West Asia Project
			  
			  International Crops Research Institute For The Semi Arid Tropics Core 2000-04 2004-06 Assess The extent of Semi Arid Tropical Land Degradation More Efficient Friendly Crop Management And Pest Control Options Analyse And Conserve Biodiversity to Sustain Crop Activity Partnerships To share Breeding Materials In Farmer -Ready Forms 
			 Conference on Nitrogen Fixation Project
			  
			  West Africa Rice Development Association  2000-04 2004-06 Resource Use Efficiency In Integrated Rice Based Systems Development Of profitable Land And Water Use Systems 
			  
			  International Institute Of Tropical Agriculture Core 2000-04 2004-06 Farming System Diversification Improvement Of Yam Based Systems 
			 Weed Management Project
			 Overcoming Major Constraints To Conventional Yam breeding Project
			 Microbal Control Of Termites Africa Project
			  
			  International Water Management Institute. Core  2004-06  
			 Water And Food Challenge Programme Project
			 Small holder water management systems Project
			 Strengthening Underutised Crops Project
			 Water Short Basins In South Africa Project
			  
			  World Fish Core 2000-04 2004-06  
			 Mekong Project Project
			 ICLARM IITA Project Project
			 Caribbean Marine Protected Areas Project
			 Nile Talipia Project Project
			 Silver Barb in South East Asia Project
			 Associate Professional Officer for Mekong Project Project
			 Women In Fisheries Seminar Project
			  
			  International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre Core 2000-04 2004-06 Increasing The Yield Stability Of Mid Altitude Maize Germplasm Developing sustainable Maize Based Cropping Systems For The Poor Developing Maize Based Cropping Systems For Drought Prone Areas 
			 Farmers Dialogue Project
			 Challenge Programme Crop Diversity Project
			  
			  Global Forum on Agricultural Research 
			 Stakeholders Analysis For Effective Partnerships Project
			  
			  International Centre for Development Orientated Research In Agriculture Core 2000-04 2004-06 Operationalisation Of ICRA's Strategy Individual Fellowships For Regular Core Learning Programmes 
			  
			  International Centre of Tropical Agriculture Core 2000-04 2004-06 Bean Improvement For Sustainable Productivity Rural Agro -Enterprise Development 
			 High Value Products Workshop Project
			 Soil Water Nutrient Management Project
			 Conference On Social Research Project
			 Bolivia Initiative Project
			 Whtefly Project Project
			 Research Gender Analysis Project
			  
			  International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Core 2000-04 2004-06 Property Rights And Collective Action In Natural Resource Management Targeted Interventions To Reduce And Prevent Poverty Sustainable Development Of Less Favoured Lands 
			 Public And Private Partnership Project
			 Harvest Plus Challenge Programme Project
			  
			  International Rice Research Institute  2000-04 2004-06 Characterising And Analysing Asian Rainfed Rice Environments Managing Crop Soil And Water Resources For Enhanced Productivity Improved Productivity Of Farming Systems in Upland Rice Areas 
			  
			  Forum for Agricultural Research In Africa 
			 Sub-Saharan African Challenge Programme Project  2004-06  
			  
			 International Potato Centre Project 2000-04 2004-06 Sweet Potato Virus And Vitamin Enhancement Late Blight 
			 Diseases of Potatoes Project
			  
			  World Vegetable Centre  2000-04 2004-06  
			 Development Of an Pest management Strategy Project
			 Mungbean In Cereal Fallows in Indo Gangetic Plants Project
			 Sustainable Management of Tomato Project
			 Improving Food Security In Sub Saharan Africa Project
			 Promotion of Mungbean Reasearch Project
			  
			  International Network Bamboo Ratten Project 
			 Phase 1 Project
			 Phase 2 Project
			  
			  International Foundation For Science Core  2004-06  
			  
			  International Centre For Research In Agroforestry Core 2000-04 2004-069  
			 Poverty Reduction In Rural Communities Project
			  
			  Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau International 
			 Partnership Facility Project
			 Rice Wheat Project
			 Global Plant Clinic Project
			 World Bank Assessment Project

Bangladesh

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding and resources his Department has  (a) provided in each of the last three financial years and  (b) committed in each of the next three financial years for communities living on the chars of Bangladesh; what proportion of the funding has been spent (i) bilaterally and (ii) multilaterally; and through which organisations funding has been spent.

Gareth Thomas: DFID has provided £10.7 million of bilateral funding over the last three financial years (£1.1 million in 2004-05, £3.3 million in 2005-06 and £6.3 million in 2006-07) to support 'char' island communities in Bangladesh under the Chars Livelihoods Programme (CLP). All funding is routed through Maxwell Stamp plc., the managing agents for the programme: about 70 per cent. is passed to 30 local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which transfer cash stipends and assets (such as cows, poultry and vegetable seeds) to poor and destitute women and, fund the raising of households above normal flood levels; the remaining 30 per cent. goes through five local government offices to provide cash for public works which create employment opportunities for poor communities on the island chars. We expect to spend a further £10 million per year on the CLP in each of the next three financial years.

Climate Change

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development who is overseeing his Department's work on climate change.

Gareth Thomas: The Department, as a whole, is addressing how climate change should be integrated into our work. On policy, the director of the Policy and Research Division leads on policy, advised by the chief scientific adviser and the heads of profession. The Global and Environment Assets Team of the Sustainable Development Group is the lead team on climate change in the Policy and Research Division.
	The directors that manage our country programmes and work with the multilateral development institutions lead on implementation. For example, the International Financial Institutional Department leads on DFID's engagement with the World Bank and regional development banks on low carbon energy; DFID country offices are leading on the piloting of risk assessments; and the Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department leads on disasters associated with climate change.
	All directors report to one of three director-generals who, through DFID's permanent secretary, report to the Secretary of State and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.

Correspondence

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many letters to his Department sent from hon. Members during Session 2005-06 remain unanswered, broken down by those which are  (a) one,  (b) two,  (c) three,  (d) four and  (e) over six months old.

Hilary Benn: There are no letters from Session 2005-06 remaining unanswered after one, two, three, four and six months.
	The Cabinet Office publishes an annual report to Parliament on departmental performance in replying to Members/Peers correspondence. The report for correspondence in 2006 is being collated and will be published as soon as it is ready.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he will reply to the letter of 7 December 2006 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms Sarah Carswell.

Hilary Benn: There is no record in DFID of having received the letter of 7 December from my right hon. Friend for Manchester, Gorton, on behalf of his constituent Sarah Carswell. I would be happy to reply to it if the right hon. Member would send me a copy.

Democratic Republic of Congo

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make representations to the UN  (a) to take a stronger line on natural resource exploitation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and  (b) to deal with the activities of armed groups.

Hilary Benn: We continue to support the UN's group of experts in its important role monitoring the UN arms embargo on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including the linkages between the funding of armed groups and the exploitation of natural resources in the DRC. However, it is action by the Congolese government that will determine progress on improving natural resource management for the benefit of the Congolese people. We continue to press the authorities for action and will provide support, with international partners, where we can.
	The international community has made clear in UN Security Council resolutions that civilian protection (including humanitarian personnel, under imminent threat of physical violence) is an integral part of MONUC's (the UN Mission to the DRC) Chapter VII mandate. MONUC has undertaken military operations against the Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda (FDLR) and other Congolese and foreign and Congolese militias. We continue to encourage MONUC to take a robust stance against these groups, including in support of responsible Congolese army actions. But we are also clear that the solution to the problem requires other measures as well as military pressure, including political leadership by the new government.

Global Environmental Facility

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding and resources the Government have  (a) provided in each of the last three financial years and  (b) committed in each of the next three financial years for the Least Developed Country Fund of the Global Environmental Facility.

Gareth Thomas: DFID pledged £10 million over three years to the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), from 2006-07 . DFID provided £3.5 million for 2006-07 and plans to provide further instalments of £3.5 million in 2007-08 and £3 million in 2008-09. DFID is currently the largest contributor to the LDCF and will review the need for further contributions at the next replenishment meeting, currently planned for mid-2007.

Iraqi Refugees

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance is being given by his Department to the refugees from Iraq who have crossed Iraqi borders into neighbouring countries.

Hilary Benn: We are very concerned at the increasing numbers of people fleeing the sectarian violence in Iraq. The United Nations estimate that the total number of Iraqi refugees living in neighbouring countries has risen to 1.8 million, with 492,000 displaced since the Samarra bombing in February 2006.
	I have just announced a £4 million contribution to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to provide emergency assistance, including water, medical supplies and rehabilitation of health infrastructure to vulnerable people, including IDPs inside Iraq. We are also considering UNHCR's appeal, which includes help to refugees in neighbouring countries. This brings our total humanitarian contribution for Iraq to over £120 million since 2003, including £85 million for the UN's 2003 Humanitarian Appeal and £36 million to the International Red Cross. Additionally, DFID provided £70 million to the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI), which provides support to internally displaced persons.

National Development Plans

Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps the Government are taking to promote the integration of the environment into national development plans.

Gareth Thomas: DFID works with partners in poor countries and other donors to promote integration of the environment into country-led policies, planning and programmes. For example DFID supported the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Poverty Environment Initiative (PEI) and its environmental integration programmes in Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Vietnam, and Cambodia, and we will co-operate with a similar new joint UNDP and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) PEI. DFID is working with other OECD donors to develop and promote best practice on integrating natural resource management into country-led planning. We have also directly helped some partner countries, such as Tanzania, Uganda, Bangladesh, Nepal and China. DFID is producing a case study of successful Tanzanian experience for use by other donors and partner countries.

Overseas Aid: Corruption

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimates he has made of the proportion of the UK overseas aid budget lost to corruption; and in which countries this occurs.

Hilary Benn: The amounts lost to corruption cannot be easily identified due to its hidden nature. The World Bank's public website summarises the situation well:
	"Corruption is a cancer and no country, rich or poor, is immune ... Fraud and corruption have undoubtedly occurred in [Bank-funded] projects, but it would be nearly impossible to determine how much [Bank] money might have been lost. Corruption on a world-wide, country by country basis has not been measured by anyone, given the difficulties and enormous costs of collecting quantitative data on the subject".
	However, while corruption is impossible to assess fully, DFID is working actively to combat it domestically in the UK, with partners at the country level and internationally. Where instances of fraud or corruption do come to light, our policy is one of zero tolerance and action will be taken to recover any funds that have been lost.
	We have a range of preventative controls and procedures in place to minimise the risk of DFID funds being lost to corruption. With partner countries, we support them to improve national systems and reduce the risk of funds being wasted or misused. Together with other international partners, we are providing ongoing support for long term programmes to strengthen the public financial management systems of many partner governments, for example in Malawi, Mozambique and Rwanda. These programmes typically address a range of public financial management issues from budget planning and design (e.g. helping to establish medium term expenditure frameworks); to improving infrastructure (computerised financial management information systems); to helping strengthen key institutions such as the National Audit Office. We also support many initiatives with civil society, parliaments and anti-corruption bodies to increase the demand for accountability and better governance.

Recruitment Agencies

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: DFID does not hold information centrally on how much was paid to recruitment agencies for the hire of temporary staff in each year since 1997, and this could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	From 2005-06, information on agency costs, and the cost of other staff employed on short-term contracts, has been collated when preparing DFID's resource accounts. The total agency costs for 2005-06 were £3.8 million. The costs of those on short-term contracts was £1.7 million. The equivalent information for previous years is not available.
	In 2007, DFID will be joining an existing scheme, set up by the Prison Service, for the provision of temporary staff. Once the new arrangements come into force, information on the cost of hiring temporary staff will be available from a central source.

Retirement Age

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2006,  Official Report, column 1466W, on retirement age, what tests of  (a) experience and  (b) evidence he will be applying to check for a negative impact on (i) performance and (ii) workforce planning as a result of removing the default retirement age; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: We have not yet established the tests we will apply should we remove the default retirement age. There are very few staff due to retire at age 65 between now and 2011. We have calculated the numbers to be less than five in each year for 2007 and 2008. We propose to look again at the removal of the default retirement age, most probably in 2009, by which time we will have experience of requests under the "duty to consider" procedure from employees wishing to work beyond age 65 and taken account of the experience of other organisations with this issue.

Royal Mail

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent using Royal Mail in each of the last five years.

Hilary Benn: DFID payments to Royal Mail, and agents acting on their behalf, over the last five years were as follows;
	
		
			  Calendar year  £ 
			 2002 105,181 
			 2003 105,686 
			 2004 72,100 
			 2005 80,243 
			 2006 66,698

Strategy for Sustainable Agricultural Research

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the full title is of each research project agreed under the strategy for sustainable agricultural research announced in March 2006; which institution are carrying out each project; and what the  (a) cost and  (b) deadline for completion is of each project.

Gareth Thomas: The details of projects to date agreed under the strategy for sustainable agricultural research are detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  Details of projects funded under DFID's strategy for research on sustainable agriculture 
			  Title of Project  Organisation  Total cost  (£ million)  Completion date 
			  Research into use projects
			 Research into use Natural Resources International Ltd 37.5 31 March 2011 
			 Public private partnership Global Livestock for Livestock Vaccines Ltd 2.287 31 March 2008 
			  Joint programmes with UK research councils 
			 Sustainable agriculture for international development research call Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council 4.0 24 July 2011 
			  Regional programmes 
			 Interim funding for existing research programme Conference of the agricultural research in West and Central Africa (CORAF) 0.37 31 January 2007 
			 Technical assistance on institutional strengthening Conference of the agricultural research in West and Central Africa (CORAF) 0.736 1 June 2007 
			 Preparation of final operational plan Association for strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA) 0.128 1 August 2006 
			 Technical assistance Southern Africa Development Community Programme (SADC) 0.039 1 August 2006 
			 Technical assistance to develop the multi-country agricultural productivity programme Southern Africa Development Community Programme (SADC) 0.197 1 December 2006 
			 Andes regional programme International Center of Tropical Agriculture 3.75 31 August 2010 
			  Support to international agricultural centres 
			 Genetic diversity challenge programme International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center 7.5 31 March 2007 
			 Harvest plus challenge agriculture International Food Policy Research Institute 1.5 31 March 2007 
			 Sub-Saharan African challenge programme Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) 0.64 1 June 2006 
			 Water and food challenge programme International Water and Management Institute 7.5 31 March 2007 
			 Running costs of consultative group on International Agricultural Research Science Council World Bank 0.2 1 July 2006 
			 International assessment on the role of agricultural science and technology World Bank 0.282 31 March 2007 
			 Fodder project—phase 2 International Livestock Research Institute 1.438 30 September 2009 
			 Underutilised crop research and development in Africa and Asia International Water Management Institute 0.325 31 December 2007 
			 Whitefly project phase III International Center of Tropical Agriculture 1.451 31 March 2008 
			 Strengthen links between consultative group on international Agricultural Research and Civil Society International Center of Tropical Agricultural 0.425 1 May 2008 
			 Core funding International Foundation for Science 0.75 1 March 2009 
			 Policy work on bamboo and rattan phase 2 International Network for Bamboo and Rattan 0.054 1 September 2006 
			 Global plant clinic Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI) 0.75 31 March 2008 
			 Rice wheat project Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI) 0.375 31 March 2006 
			 International assessment on the role of agricultural science and technology payment of authors costs Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI) 0.211 31 December 2008 
		
	
	
		
			  Core funding to international institutions (amounts given are annual allocations for 2006-07) 
			   Annual cost (£ million) Completion date 
			 Core funding Bioiversity International 0.955 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding Center for International Forestry Research 0.63 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Center of Tropical Agriculture 0.755 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas 0.82 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Center for Research in Agroforestry 0.63 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics 1.26 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) 0.5 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Institute of Tropical Agriculture 0.63 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Livestock Research Institute 0.795 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center 0.9 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Potato Center 0.67 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Rice Research Institute 1.175 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Service for National Agricultural Research (part of IFPRI) 0.305 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Water Management Institute 0.63 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding West Africa Rice Development Association 0.5 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding World Fish Center 0.46 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding World Vegetable Center 0.7 31 March 2007 
			 Core funding International Centre for Development Orientated Research in Agriculture 0.25 31 March 2007 
			 Partnership facility Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau International 0.4 31 March 2007 
			  Note: DFID's strategy for research on sustainable agriculture was launched by the Secretary of State in March 2006. The strategy comprises four components: support to international agricultural research institutions; programmes to get existing research into use; support to regional programmes; and, programmes with UK research councils. Details of projects and programmes to date launched under the strategy are detailed together with core funding to organisations.

Temporary International Mechanism

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his most recent estimate is of the likely duration of the Temporary International Mechanism.

Hilary Benn: The Temporary International Mechanism (TIM) was most recently extended by the Quartet (EU, US, UN, Russia) until March 2007. The TIM is expected to remain in place for long as it is needed or until the situation in the Palestinian territory changes significantly.

UNICEF: Food Spoilage

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total amount of food spoilage from UNICEF stocks was in 2006.

Gareth Thomas: UNICEF does not hold food stocks.

World Trade Talks

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to seek progress on productive negotiations on the development aspects of world trade talks.

Hilary Benn: We welcome the recently renewed discussions on Doha and are working closely with EU member states, the US and other World Trade Organisation (WTO) members at all levels to help break the deadlock in negotiations. We continue to encourage all parties to show flexibility in their approach and are continuing to push for progress on the issues of greatest concern to developing countries, especially improved market access and a reduction in trade-distorting subsidies.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Bail

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people arrested in 2005-06 were on bail.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is not available centrally.
	This information is held locally however and is one of the factors that can be considered by the courts when deciding whether or not to grant bail in a particular case.

British Citizens: Convictions Abroad

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many referrals to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of British prisoners  (a) released and  (b) deported from abroad have been made by the Consular Division of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in each of the last five years.

Kim Howells: I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave to the hon. Member for Sheffield, Hallam (Mr. Clegg) on 15 January 2007,  Official Report, column 830W, and 19 January 2007,  Official Report, column 1405W.

Community Support Officers

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community support officers there are in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency.

Tony McNulty: Data for police strength by constituency area are not collected centrally as part of the police statistics series. Data for police community support officer (PCSO) strength by Basic Command Unit (BCD) are available. As at 30 June 2005 there were 32 PCSOs in the Northern Division BCD of Lancashire police.
	These data are published by the Police Human Resources Unit and can be downloaded from the following link:
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/news-and-publications/publication/community-policing/CSO_numbers_June_2005.pdf

Criminal Investigation Department Officers

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fully qualified and substantive Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officers completed CID training courses in each police force in each of the last 10 years.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 23 January 2007
	This information is not collected by the Home Office. The training of officers for particular duties is a matter for chief officers.

Deaf People: Interpreters

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to ensure that the national guidance laid down by his Department on language service professionals for deaf people in the criminal justice system results in access to the justice system for deaf people.

Tony McNulty: The revised national agreement on the use of interpreters in the Criminal Justice System will give clear guidance on identifying the right mode of access and communication for a deaf person and on finding an appropriate language service professional. The text will be sent to all criminal justice agencies, and it is their responsibility to ensure that the guidance is implemented appropriately.

Deaf People: Interpreters

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to create a national single contact register of language service professionals for deaf people available to police constabularies on a 24-hour basis.

Tony McNulty: The Council for the Advancement of Communication with Deaf People already provides a searchable register of language service professionals. The database is available to subscribers on a 24-hour basis. The revised national agreement will provide additional guidance on other sources of language services professionals to assist in communication with deaf people in the criminal justice system.

Deaf People: Interpreters

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will seek to amend the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 to define interpreters as regards deaf people to mean those as appropriate to the communication needs of a deaf person, to include language service professionals who are BSL/English interpreters, lipspeakers, deaf blind interpreters and speech to text reporters.

Tony McNulty: Section 13 of PACE Code C states that wherever possible, interpreters for the deaf are drawn from the Directory of BSL/English interpreters.
	However, we are content to consider amending this Section of PACE Code C in any future revision of the Codes of Practice, and lipspeakers, deaf blind interpreters and speech to text reporters will be added to the Register of Changes which is found on the Home Office PACE Codes web page.
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/operational-policing/powers-pace-codes/pace-code-intro/

Deaf People: Interpreters

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what steps police constabularies are taking to meet their duties to deaf people under the Disability Discrimination Acts and the Disability Equality Duty;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the extent to which delays take place in police stations when a deaf detainee is being processed because of the time taken to find a British Sign Language/English interpreter or lipspeaker;
	(3)  if he will take steps to ensure that all language service professionals attending police stations are provided with  (a) the Police and Criminal Evidence Act guidelines Code of Practice A-G and  (b) other essential documents of police procedure;
	(4)  how many people  (a) with and  (b) without a hearing disability were processed at police stations in the last 12 months.

Tony McNulty: This information is not held centrally and is a matter for individual chief police officers.
	PACE is available online at:
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/operational-policing/powers-pace-codes/pace-code-intro/.

Deportations

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the 20 countries to which the largest numbers of people have been deported from the UK in each of the last five years.

John Reid: The information requested is not currently available and could be obtained by an examination of individual case records only at disproportionate cost.

DNA Database

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of the population have their details stored on the national DNA database, broken down by region.

Joan Ryan: The following table contains details of the individuals from each police force area, held on the National DNA Database as at 31 October 2006, grouped into ACPO regions. It should be noted that the Database shows which force took a DNA sample from the individual concerned, not which force area the person resides in.
	
		
			  Police force areas by ACPO region  Number of individuals on the database  Number of residents  Percentage of individuals from each police force area whose DNA is held on the NDNAD 
			  South West
			 Devon and Cornwall 76,975 1,601,300 4.81 
			 Avon and Somerset 68,549 1,511,600 4.53 
			 Wiltshire 36,336 610,323 5.95 
			 Dorset 35,346 677,500 5.22 
			 Gloucestershire 31,740 564,559 5.62 
			 Total for South West 248,946 4,965,282 5.01 
			 
			  South East
			 Thames Valley 100,301 1,918,600 5.23 
			 Surrey 42,395 1,080,644 3.92 
			 Sussex 77,828 1,259,130 6.18 
			 Hampshire 101,194 1,797,500 5.63 
			 Kent 101,132 1,599,912 6.32 
			 Total for South East 422,850 7,655,786 5.52 
			 
			  London
			 City of London police 16,717 8,000 208.96 
			 Metropolitan police 578,238 7,200,000 8.03 
			 Total for London 594,955 7,208,000 8.25 
			  Eastern
			 Bedfordshire 32,002 493,800 6.48 
			 Cambridgeshire 36,893 729,800 5.06 
			 Essex 85,791 1,622,403 5.29 
			 Hertfordshire 52,235 1,043,000 5.01 
			 Norfolk 47,036 783,000 6.01 
			 Suffolk 33,152 679,900 4.88 
			 Total for Eastern 287,109 5,351,903 5.36 
			 
			  East Midlands
			 Derbyshire 60,085 986,000 6.09 
			 Leicestershire 47,935 974,000 4.92 
			 Lincolnshire 32,657 634,200 5.15 
			 Northamptonshire 31,461 638,238 4.93 
			 Nottinghamshire 71,937 1,031,687 6.97 
			 Total for East Midlands 244,075 4,264,125 5.72 
			 
			  West Midlands
			 Staffordshire 68,131 1,047,380 6.50 
			 Warwickshire Police 21,396 507,900 4.21 
			 West Mercia 53,799 1,158,476 4.64 
			 West Midlands 205,541 2,648,939 7.76 
			 Total for West Midlands 348,867 5,362,695 6.51 
			 
			  Wales
			 Dyfed-Powys/Haverford West 36,279 476,000 7.62 
			 Gwent 37,694 565,000 6.67 
			 North Wales 42,104 629,000 6.69 
			 South Wales Constabulary 85,952 1,225,900 7.01 
			 Total for Wales 202,029 2,895,900 6.98 
			 
			  North West
			 Cheshire 56,508 983,076 5.75 
			 Cumbria 31,890 487,038 6.55 
			 Greater Manchester police 176,319 2,571,800 6.86 
			 Lancashire 98,199 1,429,450 6.87 
			 Merseyside 89,704 1,409,372 6.36 
			 Total for North West 452,620 6,880,736 6.58 
			 
			  North East
			 Cleveland 36,068 541,000 6.67 
			 Durham 37,474 591,300 6.34 
			 Humberside 59,571 900,000 6.62 
			 Northumbria 118,929 1,438,300 8.27 
			 North Yorkshire 39,228 737,600 5.32 
			 South Yorkshire 83,159 1,291,200 6.44 
			 West Yorkshire 151,337 2,110,100 7.17 
			 Total for North East 525,766 7,609,500 6.91 
			  Note: The number of residents in each police force area is taken from the Police Almanac (2006). The figures from the database are those at 31 October 2006. The number of profiles shown for each force and region relates to the number of people sampled by each force, not the number of those sampled who live in the force area. This explains the figure for the City of London police — the force has a very small resident population and almost all those sampled live elsewhere. Previous statistics on the number of individuals on the Database were calculated on the basis that 11 per cent. of the profiles were replicates, i.e. the number of individuals was 11 per cent. less than the number of profiles. The Database has recently advised that the replication rate is now 13.7 per cent. so the figures have now been calculated on this basis.

Gypsies and Travellers

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions East Sussex Constabulary  (a) has and  (b) has not moved on illegally parked Gypsies and Travellers in each of the last five years.

Tony McNulty: Sussex police do not hold data on the number of times Travellers have been moved or the decision taken not to move them in a central location. All such decisions are authorised by a superintendent or chief superintendent rank and the rationale recorded. On east Sussex division, since October 2006, Travellers have been moved on three occasions and a decision not to move Travellers has been made on another three occasions.

Identity Fraud

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many crimes involving identity fraud were committed  (a) in the last 12 months and  (b) in each of the previous 10 years.

Joan Ryan: The information sought is not available centrally because there is no single offence of identity fraud. However, questions have been incorporated into the British Crime Survey and the results should give us more information about the victims of this type of crime.
	In addition, the 250 members of CIFAS, the UK's Fraud Prevention Service for the private sector (mainly financial services companies), recorded 51,025 victims of identity fraud in the first three quarters of 2006 and estimate that this will rise to 68,000 for the entire year. Victims of identity fraud as recorded by CIFAS in previous years are 22,520 in 2000, 26,266 in 2001, 32,737 in 2002, 43,094 in 2003, 50,455 in 2004 and 56,200 in 2005.

Identity Theft

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of people subject to identity theft in each year since 2002;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of persons subject to identity theft were  (a) under 18 years of age and  (b) under 12 years of age in each year since 2002.

Joan Ryan: The information sought is not available centrally because there is no single offence of identity theft. However, questions have been incorporated into the British Crime Survey and the results should give us more information about the victims of this type of crime. Due to the economic motive for identity theft, the number of victims under 18 years of age and 12 years of age is likely to be very low.
	In addition, the 250 members of CIFAS, the UK's Fraud Prevention Service for the private sector (mainly financial services companies), recorded 32,737 victims of identity fraud in 2002, 43,094 in 2003, 50,455 in 2004, 56,200 in 2005 and 51,025 for the first three quarters of 2006 (CIFAS estimate that this will rise to 68,000 for the entire year).
	CIFAS also commissioned Perpetual Research and Consultancy International (PRCI) Ltd to conduct a study to access the impact of identity fraud on victims. The report 'Identity Fraud: What about the victim?' included an assessment of all of the 55,548 victims of impersonation recorded on the CIFAS database as at the end of July 2005. Of these, 1 per cent. were under 21 years of age.

Informants: Prisons

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library a copy of the training documentation on the handling of informants in HM Prison Service.

Gerry Sutcliffe: It would not be appropriate to do so. The training documentation is operationally sensitive and may be shared only with staff actively engaged in the handling of informants or the management of those processes.

Murders

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many murderers released on parole in each of the last 15 years have subsequently been convicted of violent crime.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Reconviction information for offenders convicted of murder, released on life licence, and subsequently reconvicted for a grave offence was published in 1997 as: Life Licensees—Reconvictions and recalls by the end of 1995: England and Wales, Home Office Statistical Bulletin 297. The report is available online at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/hosb297.pdf
	Grave offences are mainly offences of homicide, serious wounding, rape, buggery, robbery, aggravated burglary and arson endangering life.
	Table 3 (page 10) of the report shows that 1.1 per cent. of people who served a mandatory life sentence for murder and were released on life licence between 1972 and 1993 were reconvicted of a grave offence within two years of release (12 of 1,121 released and successfully matched to the Offenders Index for their criminal history. A total of 1,212 were released during this period; 91 could not be matched to the Offenders Index).
	A five-year reconviction rate is available for those released between 1972 and 1990, and shows that 2.7 per cent. of people who served a mandatory life sentence for murder and were released on life licence were reconvicted of a grave offence within five years of release (26 of 936 released and successfully matched to the Offenders Index for their criminal history. A total of 1,019 were released during this period; 83 could not be matched to the Offenders Index).

Murders

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many murders were committed by criminals out of prison on licence in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information is not available in the form requested. Data on the number of individuals convicted of murder while being supervised by the Probation Service cannot be broken down to show how many of those individuals were serving community sentences and how many were on licence following release from custody.

Neighbourhood Crime Monitoring

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what resources were made available to  (a) Neighbourhood Watch and  (b) farm watchers (i) in England and (ii) in the Vale of York in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what follow-up there is to reports of suspicious activities by farm watchers in rural areas by vehicles whose registration numbers are posted to the police for this purpose.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office does not provide direct funding to Neighbourhood Watch and other Watch schemes. However, in the last three years, the Home Office has provided free literature to Neighbourhood Watch and Home Watch schemes, a training pack for co-ordinators, a website providing information and news plus a discussion forum, and public liability insurance for Neighbourhood Watch activities. A national conference was organised for Neighbourhood Watch members in March 2005.
	Neighbourhood Watch schemes in Vale of York have access to these resources.
	Farm Watches are voluntary organisations similar to Neighbourhood Watch schemes, set up where needed in rural areas. The Home Office does not provide any resources specific to Farm Watch, although generic Neighbourhood Watch literature and advice can be adapted.
	Response by police reports from Farm Watches will vary depending on local issues, control strategies, response plans, tactical assessments, circumstances, and availability of resources. When given reports of suspicious vehicles, the police may check the Police National Computer, which may indicate any stolen, or other vehicle interest markers and any other previous police checks. Further checks can then be made and the result of these checks and the circumstances would influence local police response.

Non-emergency Police Number

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans there are to introduce the non-emergency police number 101 in the Dorset area.

Tony McNulty: Evaluation and assessment of the introduction of the Single Non-Emergency Number, 101, in the five Wave one Police and Local Authority Partnership areas are currently ongoing. Plans for future programme development beyond wave one partnership areas, including Dorset, will be deferred pending the outcome of this evaluation and assessment, including optimum costs and benefits, to be completed in autumn 2007.

Overseas Registration Plates

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to ensure that vehicles with overseas registration plates can be traced in order to enforce prosecutions and penalties after they are identified on cameras committing speed and red light offences.

Vernon Coaker: The growing use of automatic number plate recognition cameras, which check passing vehicles against various databases, is already helping enforcement action against the drivers of foreign registered vehicles detected speeding and jumping red lights. The number plates of those who leave the country without being dealt with can be recorded on a database and so be detected and dealt with on return here. We have also taken a number of measures to improve enforcement action against the drivers of foreign registered vehicles. These include a provision in the Road Safety Act 2006 which will allow the exchange of driver licensing and vehicle registration information with other countries. Further help will be provided by the European framework decision on the mutual recognition of financial penalties, which will allow courts in one member state to have the penalties they impose enforced in another and by the international convention on the mutual recognition of driving disqualifications.

Prisoners and Detainees: False Addresses

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many criminals who have absconded gave a non-existent address for residency in the last two years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information to answer this question is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Prisons

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of male prisoners are fathers.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This information is not routinely collected, but a resettlement survey commissioned in 2003 by the then Custody to Work Unit, Prison Service, showed that almost half (48 per cent.) of all adult male prisoners had dependent children (including stepchildren) under 18. The proportion of young male prisoners (18 to 20) who had dependent children (including stepchildren) under 18 was 20 per cent.

Prisons

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were held at Ford prison in each month since 1 January 2006.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The requested figures are in the following table, which are also available in monthly updated websites (see table 4) at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs07/prisnov06.pdf
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system, and although shown to the last individual, the figures may not be accurate to that level.
	
		
			  Population of Ford prison (end month figures for 2006) 
			   Total prison establishment 
			 January 464 
			 February 490 
			 March 522 
			 April 517 
			 May 348 
			 June 382 
			 July 394 
			 August 416 
			 September 476 
			 October 482 
			 November 454

Prisons

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedures his Department has in place to assess the suitability of prisoners to be placed in low security prisons.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Prisoners are assessed objectively in a robust and rigorous process looking at all aspects of their offending behaviour, actions they have taken to reduce their likelihood of re-offending and the risk they pose to the public. They are placed in the lowest security category consistent with their assessed risk. Only prisoners placed in the lowest security category (D) may be allocated to open conditions.

Prisons

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many adult prisoners absconded from prisons in Surrey in each of the last three years, broken down by category of conviction; how many such prisoners are still at liberty, broken down by category of conviction; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: There are no recorded absconds from any prison in Surrey in the period 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2006.

Prisons

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison staff have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) prosecuted for taking illicit drugs of Class A or B into prisons in England and Wales in each of the last three years; and how many people other than prison officers were prosecuted in the same period for the same offence.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information is not held centrally to answer the question to the level of detail required, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Prisons

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures the Government are taking to maintain accurate records of prisoners within the prison system.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Prison Core Records are currently created by the receiving establishment and managed locally at which ever holding establishment has custody of the prisoner. On release the Prisoner Core Record remains at the releasing establishment. HQ caseworker files prefixed PDP are created on request. They are tracked and stored centrally.
	The first release of C-NOMIS (the replacement prisoner case management system) was very successfully implemented, as planned, in the HM Prison Service designated early adopter, HMP Albany on 10 December 2006. It is now in use as the operational case management system for the prison.
	The implementation process requires regular checking and, if necessary, upgrading of the quality of the data held on Local Inmate Database System (to enable its successful transfer to C-NOMIS). This was achieved very successfully at HMP Albany. Measures to maintain and enhance data quality will be a continuing part of C-NOMIS during its roll out across all prisons.

Probation Service

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much money has been allocated to the probation service for  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) 2007-08.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The current resource allocation to the probation service for 2006-07 is £883 million. The resource allocation for 2007-08 is not yet settled; the indicative allocation is £908 million. After allowing for a £7 million technical adjustment relating to the funding of probation service IT, this is an increase of 3.7 per cent.
	These allocations are in respect of the local probation boards and the national probation directorate (NPD). Certain expenditure related to the probation service, but managed centrally by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), is not included. Arising from a review of NOMS HQ, the national probation directorate is being incorporated into the NOMS centre and in 2007-08 there will not be a separate NPD budget.

Road Safety

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were convicted for  (a) drunkenness,  (b) driving after consuming alcohol and  (c) causing death by dangerous driving when under the influence of drink or drugs in each year since 1997 in (i) England, (ii) each region and (iii) each London borough.

Vernon Coaker: Information from the Court Proceedings Database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform showing the number of people convicted for  (a) drunkenness,  (b) driving after consuming alcohol and  (c) causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs in each year since 1997 broken down by Government office region and London court area, are provided in the tables.
	Data broken down by London court area (or local criminal justice area) are provided as a London borough breakdown is not available. Note that the correct offence description for  (c) is causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs, and data for this offence are provided in table C.
	
		
			  Table A: Number of persons found guilty at all courts for drunkenness offences( 1) , by region and London court area, England 1997-2005( 2, 3) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Regions  
			 North East 3,715 4,198 4,178 4,443 4,111 4,128 4,641 4,531 4,843 
			 North West 6,208 6,399 5,736 5,559 5,374 5,511 5,323 3,236 1,862 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 2,962 2,941 3,098 2,945 2,539 2,442 2,892 1,791 1,388 
			 East Midlands 1,230 1,414 1,295 1,169 1,166 1,248 1,311 1,024 500 
			 West Midlands 2,060 1,945 1,535 1,313 1,208 1,170 1,152 1,260 1,103 
			 East of England 1,770 1,885 1,954 1,847 1,809 1,803 1,727 1,380 1,056 
			 London 1,617 1,715 1,581 1,263 1,556 2,331 2,351 1,217 971 
			 South East 4,054 4,670 4,334 3,988 3,882 3,910 4,147 3,209 1,844 
			 South West 2,191 2,407 2,187 2,130 2,247 2,399 2,348 1,576 1,021 
			 England 25,807 27,574 25,898 24,657 23,892 24,942 25,892 19,224 14,588 
			   
			  London court areas  
			  City of London  
			 Guildhall Justice Rooms 14 21 30 30 28 40 49 47 43 
			 Total City of London 14 21 30 30 28 40 49 47 43 
			   
			  Metropolitan police  
			  Inner London court areas  
			 Bow Street 113 133 148 107 307 852 583 186 76 
			 Camberwell Green/Tower Bridge 35 58 42 47 27 49 74 34 58 
			 Greenwich and Woolwich 45 48 52 40 43 145 114 58 47 
			 Highbury Corner 92 90 116 48 24 42 123 74 50 
			 Horseferry Road 124 147 145 114 223 300 269 190 219 
			 Marylebone 36 29 64 4 2 3 2 2 1 
			 South Western 35 31 35 23 22 26 31 19 16 
			 Thames 26 15 31 39 26 41 43 23 27 
			 West London 281 213 144 173 105 173 170 95 94 
			 Inner London Juvenile Courts — 1 — 1 — — — — — 
			   
			  Other London court areas  
			 Barking and Dagenham 11 8 11 12 13 19 32 9 9 
			 Barnet 17 13 9 22 22 32 36 16 12 
			 Bexley 20 17 24 20 13 27 82 36 6 
			 Brent 88 125 71 54 21 33 47 26 35 
			 Bromley 24 11 16 40 73 83 80 22 15 
			 Croydon 39 71 37 51 103 89 37 33 14 
			 Ealing 42 55 47 32 30 76 42 40 19 
			 Enfield 11 14 7 8 19 7 11 9 11 
			 Haringey 11 32 17 19 19 26 41 24 11 
			 Harrow 15 17 18 11 20 21 21 16 9 
			 Havering 12 24 27 19 65 88 66 37 9 
			 Hillingdon 25 95 34 54 74 86 75 35 37 
			 Hounslow 46 73 76 65 41 46 41 34 32 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames 95 57 35 13 28 23 30 18 17 
			 Merton 162 52 98 49 49 38 68 40 10 
			 Newham 13 40 46 29 31 27 29 22 48 
			 Redbridge 22 18 14 16 9 33 25 10 8 
			 Richmond upon Thames 20 83 73 38 47 36 30 18 15 
			 Sutton 65 43 32 61 63 65 90 35 15 
			 Waltham Forest 12 19 13 7 2 5 10 8 8 
			 Total Metropolitan police 1,537 1,632 1,482 1,216 1,521 2,291 2,302 1,169 928 
			   
			 Total London 1,551 1,653 1,512 1,246 1,549 2,331 2,351 1,216 971 
			 (1) Includes offences of drunkenness and drunkenness with aggravation. (2) These data are provided on the principal offence basis. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces and courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Number of persons found guilty at all courts for offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs( 1) , by region and London court area, England 1997-2005( 2,3) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Regions  
			 North East 3,985 3,740 3,821 3,976 3,913 4,032 4,177 4,352 4,123 
			 North West 12,051 11,244 10,720 10,455 10,137 10,923 11,327 11,769 11,302 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 7,755 7,228 7,083 7,010 6,757 7,157 7,555 7,849 7,987 
			 East Midlands 6,660 6,061 6,047 5,571 5,141 5,005 6,138 6,598 6,183 
			 West Midlands 9,871 8,939 8,030 7,858 7,974 8,276 8,566 8,875 8,904 
			 East of England 8,043 7,646 7,343 6,729 7,201 7,800 8,176 8,537 8,123 
			 London 15,205 12,937 11,525 10,959 10,521 12,066 11,613 11,815 11,539 
			 South East 12,661 12,462 12,594 12,094 12,262 13,726 13,039 13,088 12,405 
			 South West 7,563 7,321 7,250 6,819 6,948 7,206 7,697 7,650 7,426 
			 England 83,794 77,578 74,413 71,471 70,854 76,191 78,288 80,533 77,992 
			   
			  London court areas  
			  City of London  
			 Guildhall Justice Rooms 411 281 225 156 147 208 207 148 165 
			 Total City of London 411 281 225 156 147 208 207 145 163 
			   
			  Metropolitan police  
			  Inner London court areas  
			 Bow Street 327 194 111 135 150 209 237 211 180 
			 Camberwell Green/Tower Bridge 1,063 1,092 941 865 819 947 997 1,009 1,038 
			 Greenwich and Woolwich 898 741 631 751 835 826 868 770 758 
			 Highbury Corner 1,287 1,132 632 569 529 574 548 611 595 
			 Horseferry Road 549 439 379 334 348 361 299 310 335 
			 Marylebone 429 373 377 64 14 25 24 35 24 
			 South Western 683 507 422 317 349 421 405 336 315 
			 Thames 417 160 547 573 541 638 592 566 623 
			 West London 384 361 289 517 569 619 590 562 553 
			 Inner London Juvenile Courts 4 — — — — — — — — 
			   
			  Other London court areas  
			 Barking and Dagenham 187 236 243 252 253 358 368 299 286 
			 Barnet 457 398 380 359 353 343 329 357 337 
			 Bexley 273 234 241 217 290 325 249 256 225 
			 Brent 569 518 434 449 445 484 516 429 412 
			 Bromley 430 396 324 339 303 344 368 395 390 
			 Croydon 618 507 463 462 427 470 423 434 442 
			 Ealing 654 485 335 538 496 723 544 577 521 
			 Enfield 410 403 406 341 362 339 293 324 301 
			 Haringey 395 382 307 292 367 419 397 471 445 
			 Harrow 287 228 236 238 226 227 245 289 248 
			 Havering 296 230 245 273 226 285 271 337 306 
			 Hillingdon 400 417 403 371 340 430 435 484 490 
			 Hounslow 483 451 375 349 273 345 283 342 379 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames 264 297 266 293 261 263 233 296 285 
			 Merton 348 235 259 266 241 251 263 304 269 
			 Newham 556 426 371 356 347 438 476 490 600 
			 Redbridge 421 343 330 297 307 298 323 358 311 
			 Richmond upon Thames 271 224 235 283 204 312 283 267 218 
			 Sutton 257 232 225 254 242 246 208 253 200 
			 Waltham Forest 366 281 255 281 259 335 339 291 288 
			 Total Metropolitan police 13,983 11,922 10,662 10,635 10,376 11,855 11,406 11,663 11,374 
			   
			 Total London 14,394 12,203 10,887 10,791 10,523 12.063 11,613 11,808 11,537 
			 (1) Includes the following offences under the Road Traffic Act 1968 ss. 4 (1), 4 (2), 5 (1) (a) (b), 6 (4) and 7 (6). (2) These data are provided on the principal offence basis. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces and courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table C: Number of persons found guilty at all courts for causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs under the Road Traffic Act section 3A, by region and London court area, England 1997-2005( 1,2) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Regions  
			 North East 5 2 2 4 1 2 2 2 2 
			 North West 5 13 6 7 4 10 5 6 7 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 5 3 5 8 4 6 5 7 10 
			 East Midlands 6 7 6 5 7 4 9 12 10 
			 West Midlands 9 7 6 4 7 5 6 6 8 
			 East of England 3 6 2 1 7 11 7 7 5 
			 London 4 8 3 5 4 3 4 8 6 
			 South East 11 10 8 8 8 14 9 7 11 
			 South West 8 4 6 8 6 7 7 6 5 
			 England 56 60 44 50 48 62 54 61 64 
			   
			  London court areas  
			  City of London  
			 Guildhall Rooms — — — — — — — — — 
			 Total City of London — — — — — — — — — 
			   
			  Metropolitan police  
			  Inner London court areas  
			 Bow Street — — — — — — — — — 
			 Camberwell Green/Tower Bridge — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 Greenwich and Woolwich — — 1 — — 1 — — — 
			 Highbury Corner 2 1 — 1 — — — 1 — 
			 Horseferry Road — — — — — — — 1 1 
			 Marylebone — — — — — — — — — 
			 South Western — — — — — — — — — 
			 Thames — — — — — — — 1 — 
			 West London — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 Inner London Juvenile Courts — — — — — — — — — 
			   
			  Other London court areas  
			 Barking and Dagenham — — — — — — — — — 
			 Barnet — 2 — — — — — — 1 
			 Bexley — — — — — — 1 — — 
			 Brent — — — — — — — — — 
			 Bromley — — — 1 — — — — — 
			 Croydon 1 — — — — — — — — 
			 Ealing — — — — — — — 1 — 
			 Enfield — — — — — — — — 1 
			 Haringey — — — — — — — 1 — 
			 Harrow — 1 — — 1 — — — — 
			 Havering — 1 — 1 — 1 — 1 1 
			 Hillingdon — — — — — — — 1 1 
			 Hounslow — 1 — — — — — — 1 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames — — — — — — — — — 
			 Merton — — — — — — — — — 
			 Newham 1 — — — — — — — — 
			 Redbridge — — — 1 2 — — — — 
			 Richmond upon Thames — — — — — — — — — 
			 Sutton — — — — — — — — — 
			 Waltham Forest — 1 — — — — 1 — — 
			 Total Metropolitan police 4 7 1 4 3 2 4 7 6 
			   
			 Total London 4 7 1 4 3 2 4 7 6 
			 (1) These data are provided on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces and courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Sentencing Advisory Panel

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many representations he has received on the Sentencing Advisory Panel's consultation on theft from a shop; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Between 1 November 2006 and 19 January 2007, I have received 83 letters from Members of Parliament and 56 letters from members of the public about the Sentencing Advisory Panel's consultation on theft from a shop. It is for the Panel, and then for the Sentencing Guidelines Council, to decide how to take account of comments on the consultation paper. I will have an opportunity to offer my own comments when the Sentencing Guidelines Council issues its draft guideline in due course.

Sharad Ladva

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give a guarantee that no individual whose case was handled by Sharad Ladva will be returned to the Philippines until a full investigation of their claims has been made.

John Reid: Decisions to remove those unlawfully in the UK are taken in accordance with our published policies, obligations and consideration of circumstances on a case-by-case basis.

Support Orders

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will undertake a formal evaluation of the effectiveness of individual support orders; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: We are shortly to undertake a three month survey of 50 Respect Action Areas starting this month to assess the use of individual support orders.

Trigger Offences

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will ensure that all people under 18 years of age arrested for a trigger offence undergo a compulsory drugs test.

Vernon Coaker: There is no requirement for ail young people under-18 years who are arrested for a trigger offence to undergo a compulsory drugs test. There is no evidence to suggest that such tests alone would be effective in improving access to substance misuse and other services.
	Drug testing on charge is one of three interventions that the Drug Interventions Programme has been piloting for under-18s. These have been independently evaluated and the results will be published in due course.

Victims Commissioner

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to appoint a victims commissioner.

Gerry Sutcliffe: A recruitment campaign was run in 2006 but did not identify a suitable candidate. The Government are currently considering how best to take forward the appointment of a Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses.

War Criminals

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make publicly available records kept by the security service relating to Nazi war crimes and the intelligence gleaned in the interrogation of Nazi war criminals, including those records given to the Office of Strategic Services during and after the second world war; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The Security Service systematically reviews and if appropriate releases records in accordance with the criteria agreed with the Public Records Office and endorsed by the Advisory Council on Public Records. Most of the files relating to the second world war and the post-war period have already been released to the National Archive. Only a small amount of material, still judged to have current national security sensitivities (such as names of staff, identity of agents) has been retained.

Work Permits

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what grounds an application for a change of employer for somebody holding a work permit may be refused.

John Reid: Such an application may be refused because the new employer, work permit holder or new job do not meet the work permit criteria. The grounds are:
	 that the work permit holder:
	does not possess the qualifications or experience required for the new post;
	has a significant shareholding or beneficial interest in the UK-based company or connected business;
	was in the UK to undertake a period of training or work experience and has completed the maximum period allowed under that category or is seeking to do a different type of training or work experience;
	 that the new job:
	does not meet the skills criteria of the work permit arrangements;
	the pay and conditions of the new employment are worse than that of resident workers doing a similar job;
	does not comply with UK legislation;
	was not advertised, or advertised appropriately, where that was required;
	or that there are suitably qualified or experienced resident workers available;
	 that the new employer:
	has no UK base;
	has not shown that they are capable of offering a genuine vacancy;
	has not shown there is a genuine vacancy for an employee in this country;
	is not responsible for the employment of the work permit holder.

Young Offender Institutions

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which young offender institutions provide intensive drug treatment.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Young Offender Institutions which offer intensive drug treatment programmes are listed as follows:
	Aylesbury
	Castington
	Deerbolt
	Glen Parva
	Hindley
	Lancaster Farms
	Northallerton
	Portland
	Reading
	Rochester
	Stoke Heath
	Swinfen Hall
	ThornCross
	In addition, the following prisons in the female estate hold young offenders and provide intensive treatment programmes:
	Drake Hall
	Eastwood Park
	Holloway
	Low Newton
	New Hall
	Styal

Youth Justice Board

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the contract for the chief executive of the Youth Justice Board ends; and what the process will be for renewing the contract or appointing a successor.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The current chief executive of the Youth Justice Board is on a loan agreement from the Home Office for an initial period terminating on 30 June 2007; this period may be extended if all parties are in agreement. The post was filled by public advertisement and competition.

HEALTH

Advertising

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department spent on advertising with  The Guardian newspaper, including online, advertorials and advertising features, in the latest year for which figures are available.

Ivan Lewis: Total expenditure for departmental campaign advertising through  The Guardian in 2005-06 is £43,816.
	Figures for recruitment advertising expenditure through  The Guardian can not be provided without incurring disproportionate costs.

Agenda for Change

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many claims were outstanding from  (a) conditional fee lawyers and  (b) NHS trades unions arising from Agenda for Change in the most recent period for which figures are available; what estimate she has made of potential liabilities arising from these claims; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Information on the stated basis of equal pay claims against NHS organisations is not held centrally.

Audiology

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps her Department is taking to reduce waiting times in audiology services;
	(2)  if she will introduce a sustainable service for hearing aids equal to that of independent service providers.

Ivan Lewis: In order to improve access and reduce waiting times for audiology services, a national action plan is being developed for publication soon.
	This measure will assist in significantly reducing waiting times and will greatly benefit those who receive hearing aids.
	This national action plan will help to create a sustainable service model for audiology for the long term, including the use of independent service providers.

Care Standards Tribunal

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases have been  (a) heard and  (b) approved by the Care Standards Tribunal asking for names to be removed from lists banning proximity to children.

Ivan Lewis: I am informed by the Care Standards Tribunal that it has heard a total of 71 appeals from individuals against inclusion on the Protection of Children Act List and prohibition from teaching or working with children in education. Of these, 54 were dismissed and 17 allowed.

Claim Awards

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the 10 largest claims awarded against her Department under the Liability to Third Party Scheme are; and what the cause of the complaint was in each case.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		
			  The 10 largest settled liabilities for third parties scheme claims as at 31 December 2006 
			  Cause of the complaint  Damages paid (£) 
			 Tripped over telephone wire 200,000 
			 Pulled bed away from wall and experienced a sharp pain in her lower back 200,000 
			 Stepped back onto a board covering cable duct, board shifted as not secured and leg fell down duct 201,624 
			 Contracted Legionella. Subsequently died 210,000 
			 Injured while closing a vehicle entrance to the ambulance station 212,975 
			 Caught leg on spike protruding from bed 250,000 
			 Scanning numerous maternity patients and suffered repetitive strain injury 250,000 
			 Slipped on wet and soapy floor 258,771 
			 Hit by radiography lead screen 310,000 
			 Swivel chair fell backwards causing fall to the floor 400,000

Claim Awards

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the 10 largest claims awarded against her Department under the Property Expenses Scheme are; and what the cause of the complaint was in each case.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is in the table.
	
		
			  The 10 largest settled liabilities under the Property Expenses Scheme as at 31 December 2006 
			  Cause of the complaint  Damages paid (£) 
			 Fire possibly caused by a patient smoking 358,377 
			 Fire 468,437 
			 Fire in/adjacent to A and E department 480,000 
			 Fire 480,000 
			 Fire—cause unknown 486,341 
			 Refrigerator malfunction leading to ruined blood products 488,279 
			 Fire in main kitchen 525,046 
			 Fire—suspected arson 632,171 
			 Fire in/adjacent to A and E department 1,000,000 
			 Fire possibly caused by a patient smoking 1,000,000

Consultants

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which external consultants were used by  (a) her Department and  (b) each of its agencies in relation to private finance initiatives in 2005-06; and what the nature and cost of the work was in each case.

Ivan Lewis: During the financial year April 2005 to March 2006 the only external consultant commissioned to carry out work for the Department or any of its arm's length bodies on private finance initiative (PFI) was Mr. Stuart Kennedy (barrister) regarding the Department's involvement in resolving a dispute on the Dudley National Health Service Trust's PFI scheme. The cost of this work was £31,661.95 excluding value added tax.

Departmental Computer Data

David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether any of her Department's  (a) computer data and  (b) computer backup data is stored with online data storage providers.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has outsourced the supply of its information technology services to a professional company who store computer data and computer backup data online in their data centres.

Departmental Computer Data

David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether any of her Department's  (a) computer data and  (b) computer backup data is stored outside the United Kingdom.

Ivan Lewis: None of the Department's computer data or back-up data are stored outside the United Kingdom.

Departmental Expenditure

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much her Department spent on  (a) eating disorders,  (b) smoking reduction,  (c) alcohol abuse and  (d) drug abuse in the latest year for which figures are available; and what her Department's targets are for hospital and primary care trust spending in each category;
	(2)  what estimates her Department has made of the net cost to the economy of  (a) eating disorders,  (b) smoking reduction,  (c) alcohol abuse and  (d) drug abuse.

Caroline Flint: No breakdown of the overall spend on eating disorders by the Department has been made, nor has an estimate been made of the economic cost of eating disorders.
	The Department launched a tobacco control media campaign in December 1999 and the approximate spend on this in 2006-07 was £12.25 million. This amount does not include helpline running costs. We also fund the national health service stop smoking services and have allocated £56 million each year for this in 2006-07 and 2007-08, with £10 million of this heavily weighted towards spearhead primary care trusts.
	No estimate of the overall economic cost of smoking has been produced. However, regulatory impact assessments have been made of the impact of smoke free legislation, new pack warnings and the forthcoming rise in age of purchase from 16 to 18. Copies of these reports have been placed in the Library.
	We are spending £1.7 million in 2006-07 on the "Know your Limits" campaign, which seeks to prevent binge drinking. The Home Office is contributing additional funding. In 2006-07, the Department is also spending £1.5 million on the alcohol identification and brief advice trailblazer programme. This research programme into the effectiveness of screening and brief intervention techniques will run over two years and an equal amount of additional funding will be supplied by the Department in 2007-08.
	The Department estimates the net cost of alcohol abuse to be £20 billion per year.
	In 2005-06, we allocated £300 million to the pooled drug treatment budget, and a further £208 million local funding was made available. This money is allocated to drug action teams across the country to use to meet local action plans. The Department has estimated that for every £1 spent on drug treatment, at least £9.50 is saved in crime and health costs.
	We do not set targets for hospital or primary care trust (PCT) spending. Decisions about spending are made by each PCT. It is for PCTs, in conjunction with their strategic health authorities, to plan and develop services according to the needs of their local communities.

Echocardiograms: Portsmouth

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time is for echocardiograms to be carried out by the Portsmouth NHS Trust.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is provided in the table.
	
		
			  Diagnostic provider waiting statistics for Portsmouth Hospitals National Health Service Trust month ending 30 November 2006, length of time patients still waiting 
			   Median wait (weeks) 
			 Cardiology—echocardiography 13.6 
			  Source: Monthly diagnostics collection 
		
	
	The trust has an action plan in place to secure additional capacity and reduce waiting times.
	By the end of 2008, no patient will wait more than 18 weeks from general practitioner referral to the start of treatment, including diagnostic tests.

European Health Insurance Cards

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many European health insurance cards were issued by her Department in 2005-06; and how many were issued to  (a) UK nationals,  (b) UK residents and  (c) EU nationals.

Rosie Winterton: The issue of European Health Insurance Cards (EHICs) in the United Kingdom started in July 2005. Between this date and 31 March 2006 a total of 17 million cards were issued. EHICs are only issued to those eligible, such as UK residents and their dependants and in very specific circumstances to normally UK resident students studying in European Economic Area countries and some UK insured people working in other UK countries. This will include European Union nationals who are resident in the UK. Figures broken down by UK nationals, UK residents, and EU nationals are not available.

Foreign National Doctors

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors who qualified overseas are working in the NHS under short term, temporary contracts.

Rosie Winterton: The Department does not collect this information.

Greater Peterborough PCT

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she plans to discuss the budget reductions at the NHS Walk-in Centre at Rivergate, Peterborough in 2007-08 with officials of the Greater Peterborough primary care trust; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: We have no plans to do so. National health service walk-in centres are local services and primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for managing them locally. I would expect the Greater Peterborough PCT to raise any related issues with the NHS East of England.

Healthcare Commission

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was to voluntary healthcare providers of fees payable to the Healthcare Commission in 2005-06.

Andy Burnham: The chairman of the Healthcare Commission has confirmed that the information is not available in the form requested. In the year to 31 March 2006. the commission's income from registration and inspection fees and charges to the independent healthcare sector was £7.384 million. The equivalent figure in the previous year was £4.676 million.

Healthcare Commission

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of the Healthcare Commission's recent consultation on its proposed fee structure; and whether consultants were contracted to manage this process.

Andy Burnham: The Healthcare Commission is currently consulting on regulatory fees for the independent healthcare sector in 2007-08. The consultation period ends on 20 February. The chairman of the commission has confirmed that the costs of individual consultation exercises are not routinely separately identified. The chairman of the commission has also confirmed that no consultants have been engaged to support the consultation process.

Hepatitis C

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the Department has  (a) spent on the "FaCe It" hepatitis C awareness campaign since its inception and  (b) pledged to spend on the campaign in 2007-08.

Caroline Flint: Expenditure on the "FaCe It" hepatitis C awareness campaign to date, including forecast expenditure for 2006-07, is about £4 million. Plans for the campaign in 2007-08 have not yet been finalised.

Hospital Beds

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many permanent hospital beds were available in each of the last five years; and what the average daily number of patients admitted to hospital was in each of those years.

Andy Burnham: Table one shows the average daily number of available beds open overnight, day only beds and residential care beds in England in 2001-02 to 2005-06.
	
		
			  Table one 
			   Beds 
			 2001-02 197,833 
			 2002-03 197,932 
			 2003-04 198,433 
			 2004-05 195,376 
			 2005-06 189,816 
		
	
	Table two shows the average daily number of patients admitted in England in 2001-02 to 2005-06.
	
		
			  Table two 
			  Year  Patients admitted 
			 2001-02 25,138 
			 2002-03 25,554 
			 2003-04 26,202 
			 2004-05 27,108 
			 2005-06 28,252

Hospital Episode Statistics

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were treated on an elective inpatient or daycase basis in each year since 1990-91, as recorded in the hospital episodes statistics database; and how many of these patients were counted for the purposes of collecting official Korner waiting time data in each financial year since 1990-91.

Andy Burnham: The table shows the number of admissions in each year since 1990-91, as recorded in the hospital episodes statistics database, split by ordinary and day case. Unless suspended from the waiting list for medical or social reasons, each patient will have appeared in the month-end Korner statistics for every month-end at which they were waiting for admission.
	
		
			  Count of finished in-year admission episodes from waiting list and booked cases broken down by day cases and ordinary admissions, national health service hospitals, England 1990-91 to 2005-06 
			   Patient Classification 
			   Day Case  Ordinary 
			 1990-91 1,128,482 2,069,642 
			 1991-92 1,362,905 2,205,398 
			 1992-93 1,617,067 2,121,573 
			 1993-94 1,891,373 2,028,213 
			 1994-95 2,210,997 1,991,373 
			 1995-96 2,409,879 1,954,978 
			 1996-97 2,500,403 1,813,165 
			 1997-98 2,631,499 1,743,742 
			 1998-99 2,848,872 1,722,393 
			 1999-2000 2,773,702 1,613,654 
			 2000-01 2,705,370 1,570,080 
			 2001-02 2,591,721 1,512,387 
			 2002-03 2,672,701 1,557,842 
			 2003-04 2,671,407 1,569,844 
			 2004-05 2,652,106 1,512,169 
			 2005-06 2,809,335 1,539,366 
			  Notes: 1. A finished in-year admission is the first period on in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider, excluding admissions beginning before 1 April at the start of the data year. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. 2. Figures are grossed for coverage.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). The Information Centre for health and social care

Meat

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether  (a) meat produced from cloned (i) animals and (ii) birds,  (b) milk and milk products produced from cloned dairy animals and (c) eggs produced from cloned birds will have to be approved under EU Regulation 1829/2003 before entering the market in the EU.

Caroline Flint: The sale of foods and food ingredients derived from cloned animals falls within the scope of the Novel Foods Regulation (EC) 258/97. The authorisation and labelling of novel foods is decided on a case-by-case basis and no applications have been received to date for products derived from cloned animals.

Ministerial Visits

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many official visits she and her predecessors have made to hospitals in each county in each year since 1997.

Ivan Lewis: Information on ministerial visits within the United Kingdom is not collected centrally. The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Ministerial Visits

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what dates Ministers in her Department made official visits to the London boroughs of  (a) Tower Hamlets,  (b) Newham and  (c) Waltham Forest in each year since 1997.

Ivan Lewis: It is custom for a Minister when preparing to make a visit within the United Kingdom to inform the Members of the constituencies to be included within their itinerary.
	Information on ministerial visits within the United Kingdom is not collected centrally. The information requested can be provided at only disproportionate cost.

Neurology

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vacancies there are in the NHS for  (a) neurologists,  (b) neuro nurses and  (c) neuro associated nurses; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.

NHS: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have contracted MRSA at Barnet hospital in the 2006-07 financial year; what the figures were for 2005-06; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The total number of meticillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemias for the year 2005-06 at Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals was 78. Data for 2006-07 has not yet been published.

NHS: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of Barnet patients' appointments have been made through Choose and Book in 2006-07; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: 6,820 appointments for first out-patient services were booked through choose and book from 1 April to 30 November 2006, representing 14 per cent. of all Barnet primary care trusts (PCTs) general practitioner and general dental practitioner referrals in the period. In November 2006, the latest month for which data are available, 26 per cent. of Barnet PCT's referrals were booked through choose and book.

NHS: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) in-patients and  (b) out-patients were treated at (i) Barnet hospital, (ii) the Royal Free hospital and (iii) the Northwick Park hospital in (A) 1996-97 and (B) 2005-06; how many have been treated at each hospital in 2006-07; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: This information is not held in the format requested. However, the tables show provider based out-patient activity for 1996-97, 2005-06 and 2006-07 for North Central and North West national health service trusts.
	
		
			  Table 2: Provider based out-patient activity for 1996-97 
			  Organisation code  Organisation name  First attendances seen  Subsequent attendances seen  Total attendances 
			 RG9 Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 44,066 97,241 141,307 
			 RDC Wellhouse NHS Trust 59,062 153,610 212,672 
			  Total combined 103,128 250,851 353,979 
			  
			 RFZ Northwick Park and St. Mark's NHS trust 52,525 125,853 178,378 
			 RAU Central Middlesex NHS trust 45,953 115,131 161,084 
			  Total combined 98,478 240,984 339,462 
			  
			 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 84,302 195,346 279,648 
			  Notes:  Chase Farm NHS trust and Wellhouse NHS trust merged to become Barnet and Chase Farm NHS trust in April 1999.  Northwick Park and Central Middlesex merged to become North West London NHS trust in April 1999.  Source:  KH09 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Provider based out-patient activity for 2005-06 
			  Quarter  Organisation code  Organisation name  First attendances seen  Subsequent attendances seen  Total attendances 
			 Q1 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 27,945 60,544 88,489 
			 Q2 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 26,664 58,122 84,786 
			 Q3 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 26,895 58,262 85,157 
			 Q4 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 26,040 59,684 85,724 
			 Total RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 107,544 236,612 344,156 
			 Q1 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 26,370 56,456 82,826 
			 Q2 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 26,192 58,355 84,547 
			 Q3 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 26,639 55,688 82,327 
			 Q4 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 25,948 58,071 84,019 
			 Total RV9 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 105,149 228,570 333,719 
			 Q1 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 22,760 43,920 66,680 
			 Q2 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 24,223 46,010 70,233 
			 Q3 RVL Barnet And Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 23,817 46,150 69,967 
			 Q4 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 24,068 47,693 71,761 
			 Total RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 94,868 183,773 278,641 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Provider based out-patient activity for 2006-07 
			  Quarter  Organisation code  Organisation name  First attendances  Subsequent attendances  Total attendances 
			 Q1 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 27,607 58,264 85,871 
			 Q2 RAL Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 29,352 67,765 97,117 
			 Q1 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 20,426 49,907 70,333 
			 Q2 RV8 North West London Hospitals NHS trust 20,516 50,861 71,377 
			 Q1 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 22,539 46,160 68,699 
			 Q2 RVL Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS trust 22,673 45,128 67,801 
			  Source:  Department of Health QMO8/QMOP

NHS Beds

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total change in the number of beds in  (a) the NHS and  (b) each strategic health authority was between the financial years 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Andy Burnham: The table shows the number of available beds open overnight, day only beds and residential care beds in strategic health authorities (SHAs) in England in 2004-05 and 2005-06.
	
		
			  SHA code  SHA  2004-05  2005-06  Change 
			 Q30 North East 12,587 12,416 -171 
			 Q31 North West 29,010 28,144 -866 
			 Q32 Yorkshire and The Humber 20,422 20,226 -196 
			 Q33 East Midlands 15,079 14,627 -452 
			 Q34 West Midlands 20,153 19,912 -241 
			 Q35 East of England 19,282 17,962 -1,320 
			 Q36 London 31,828 31,055 -773 
			 Q37 South East Coast 14,423 13,867 -556 
			 Q38 South Central 12,772 12,084 -687 
			 Q39 South West 19,822 19,524 -298 
			  England 195,376 189,816 -5,560

NHS Pay

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of health service staff in England have been  (a) notified of their pay band under Agenda for Change and  (b) assimilated into the new pay structures.

Rosie Winterton: From the centrally available data, as at the end of March 2006, 99 per cent. of staff, excluding foundation trusts, had been notified of their pay band under agenda for change and had been assimilated onto the new pay system. Central monitoring was then suspended, except for trusts, excluding Foundation Trusts, where 100 or more staff remain to be assimilated. In these trusts it is estimated that fewer than 400 staff remain to be assimilated.

NHS Redundancies

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many chief executives of  (a) regional health authorities and  (b) strategic health authorities renewed cars provided by their employers within two years before being made redundant since 1996; what the cost to the public purse was of providing such cars; how many such cars were purchased by employees when they were made redundant; and how much revenue was received as a result of those purchases.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally by the Department. This is a matter for the individuals and their respective employers.

NHS Redundancies

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many chief executives of  (a) regional health authorities and  (b) strategic health authorities were given pay rises within two years before being made redundant since 1996; and what average percentage increase was awarded in such cases.

Rosie Winterton: National health service organisations are public bodies and as such, the pay of their senior executive teams is a matter of public record, published in their annual accounts.
	The Department advises NHS organisations on the maximum level of annual pay uplifts for NHS senior managers.

NHS Service Level Changes

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of whether NHS service level changes have disproportionately affected services that do not yet have a tariff set.

Andy Burnham: Any changes, or proposed changes, to services are a matter for the national health service locally. We would expect a whole range of factors to be taken into consideration in such circumstances.
	Hospitals are paid for payment by results activity at national tariff. Funding for services outside the scope of payment by results continues to be agreed locally with commissioners.

NHS Treatment: Foreign Nationals

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) foreign nationals and  (b) other EU citizens were treated on the NHS in the latest year for which figures are available; and what the cost was to the NHS in that year.

Rosie Winterton: It is not possible to provide the information requested. Successive Governments have not required the NHS to provide statistics on the number of foreign nationals seen, treated or charged under the provisions of the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989, as amended, nor any costs involved.

NHS Work Force

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) headcount and  (b) full-time equivalent size of the overall NHS work force was in each year since 1979.

Rosie Winterton: This information is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			  Numbers (headcount) 
			  England  All NHS staff  All NHS doctors  HCHS medical and dental staff( 1)  General medical practitioners( 2)  GP practice staff( 3)  HCHS non medical staff( 4) 
			 1979 n/a 65,442 42,380 23,062 n/a n/a 
			 1980 n/a 66,997 43,323 23,674 37,400 n/a 
			 1981 n/a 68,479 44,120 24,359 39,200 n/a 
			 1982 1,034,750 69,493 44,658 24,835 41,400 923,857 
			 1983 1,046,975 70,807 45,466 25,341 44,200 931,968 
			 1984 1,040,642 71,162 45,374 25,788 46,700 922,780 
			 1985 1,039,952 72,101 45,911 26,190 49,300 918,551 
			 1986 1,031,934 72,731 46,202 26,529 52,100 907,103 
			 1987 1,036,587 73,244 46,221 27,023 52,700 910,643 
			 1988 1,036,852 74,560 47,140 27,420 57,200 905,092 
			 1989 1,050,383 76,101 48,352 27,749 62,200 912,082 
			 1990 1,041,193 77,354 49,831 27,523 73,952 889,887 
			 1991 n/a 78,160 50,273 27,887 77,196 n/a 
			 1992 n/a 79,232 51,047 28,185 80,213 n/a 
			 1993 1,051,427 80,738 52,278 28,460 84,185 886,504 
			 1994 1,038,737 81,319 52,584 28,735 84,211 873,207 
			 1995 1,052,428 84,459 55,590 28,869 97,794 870,175 
			 1996 1,056,501 86,584 57,468 29,116 97,379 872,538 
			 1997 1,058,686 89,619 60,230 29,389 100,047 869,020 
			 1998 1,071,562 91,837 62,140 29,697 100,975 878,750 
			 1999 1,097,376 93,981 63,994 29,987 105,828 897,567 
			 2000 1,117,841 96,319 66,067 30,252 102,270 919,252 
			 2001 1,166,016 99,169 68,484 30,685 104,319 962,528 
			 2002 1,223,824 103,350 72,168 31,182 107,275 1,013,199 
			 2003 1,282,930 108,993 76,400 32,593 110,091 1,063,846 
			 2004 1,331,087 117,036 82,951 34,085 112,254 1,101,797 
			 2005 1,365,388 122,345 87,043 35,302 112,094 1,130,949 
			 n/a = not available (1) Excludes medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are also GPs that work part time in hospitals. (2) Excluding retainers. GP retainers were first collected in 1999 and are omitted for comparability purposes. (3) Practice staff headcount data are rounded to the nearest hundred for 1980 to 1989, figures for 1990 onwards are unrounded. (4) A new system of occupation coding for NHS non-medical staff was introduced in 1995. Figures for 1994 and earlier are not directly comparable with later years. 
		
	
	
		
			  Full time equivalents 
			  England  All NHS staff  All NHS doctors  HCHS medical and dental staff  General medical practictioners( 1)  GP practice staff( 2,3)  HCHS medical staff( 4) 
			 1979 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 1980 n/a n/a n/a n/a 19,944 n/a 
			 1981 n/a n/a n/a.. n/a 21,901 n/a 
			 1982 n/a n/a n/a n/a 23,117 782,761 
			 1983 n/a n/a n/a n/a 24,624 787,164 
			 1984 n/a n/a n/a n/a 25,994 776,981 
			 1985 n/a n/a n/a n/a 27,394 769,902 
			 1986 n/a n/a n/a n/a 29,441 758,341 
			 1987 n/a n/a 41,522 n/a 29,320 755,863 
			 1988 n/a n/a 42,836 n/a 33,703 748,644 
			 1989 n/a n/a 44,091 n/a 37,546 751,067 
			 1990 n/a n/a 45,391 n/a 45,333 742,806 
			 1991 n/a 73,662 46,527 27,135 48,731 n/a 
			 1992 n/a 74,522 47,222 27,299 51,020 n/a 
			 1993 852,834 76,124 48,737 27,387 53,952 722,758 
			 1994 839,478 76,840 49,345 27,495 51,833 710,804 
			 1995 842,310 80,064 52,575 27,489 59,254 702,992 
			 1996 848,104 81,783 54,233 27,549 59,318 707,003 
			 1997 846,298 84,758 57,099 27,660 60,579 700,961 
			 1998 855,129 86,594 58,746 27,848 61,332 707,203 
			 1999 873,226 88,371 60,338 28,033 63,087 721,767 
			 2000 892,230 90,248 62,094 28,154 62,583 739,399 
			 2001 930,633 92,495 64,055 28,439 64,998 773,141 
			 2002 977,961 96,999 68,260 28,740 67,107 813,854 
			 2003 1,026,976 102,037 72,260 29,777 69,140 855,799 
			 2004 1,071,203 109,224 78,462 30,762 72,006 889,973 
			 2005 1,103,789 114,251 82,568 31,683 72,990 916,548 
			 n/a = data not available (1) Excluding retainers. GP retainers were first collected in 1999 and are omitted for comparability purposes. (2) Practice staff figures for 1991 to 1994 may not be fully comparable with other data due to under-reporting of fundholding practice staff by FHSAs. (3) Includes estimated data for Buckinghamshire. (4) A new system of occupation coding for NHS non-medical staff was introduced in 1995. Figures for 1994 and earlier are not directly comparable with later years.  Notes: 1. Full time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. 2. The first medical and dental figures included are for 1987 as figures before then are not seen as being comparable. GP FTE figures were not calculated before 1990, and the first FTE figure we can locate for GPs are for 1991. 3. All data as at 30 September except GP data as at 1 October 1975-99 and 30 September 2000-05. In both cases (headcount and FTE) the non-medical data which makes up the greatest proportion of the NHS workforce only goes back to 1982. Data for years before this are not seen as sufficiently comparable to include in this time series. Total non-medical figures are also not available for 1991 and 1992 as for these years half the census was paper-based and half electronic, so as we no longer hold the paper returns, our systems only have an incomplete record for these years.  Source: The Information Centre for health and social care general and personal medical services statistics The Information Centre for health and social care medical and dental workforce census The Information Centre for health and social care non-medical workforce census

NHS Work Force

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the evidential basis was for her statement on Sky News on 7 January 2007 that the NHS work force would see a reduction of 18,000 jobs in the 2006-07 financial year.

Rosie Winterton: This figure is based on trends in employment levels reported by trusts and primary care trusts since April 2006.

Nightclub Noise Levels

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will commission research into the potential for damage to be caused to people's hearing by the level of noise in nightclubs.

Andy Burnham: The Department has no plans to do so.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has responsibility for health and safety. This includes responsibility for legislation that requires employers to prevent or reduce risks to health from exposure to noise at work.

Nursing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many foreign  (a) nurses and  (b) doctors were employed as nurses in the NHS in 2005-06.

Rosie Winterton: The number of doctors employed in the national health service who qualified outside the United Kingdom is shown in the table. Information relating to the country of qualification or origin is not collected centrally for nurses.
	
		
			  All doctors: hospital and community health services (HCHS) medical staff( 1,2)  and general medical practitioners( 3)  by country of primary medical qualification, as at 30 September 2005, England 
			  Number (headcount) 
			   All countries of qualification  Qualified in UK  Qualified outside UK  
			 of which:  Qualified in remainder of European Economic Area  Qualified elsewhere 
			 All doctors(1,2,3) 119,017 79,247 39,770 6,810 32,960 
			 HCHS medical staff(1,2) 83,073 50,721 32,352 5,041 27,311 
			 General medical practitioners(3) 35,944 28,526 7,418 1,769 5,649 
			 (1) Excludes all staff with a dental specialty. Information about country of qualification is derived from the General Medical Council. For staff in dental specialties, with a General Dental Council registration, the country of qualification is unknown. (2) Excludes medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are also GPs working part time in hospitals. (3) All general medical practitioners includes contracted GPs, GMS others, PMS others, GP registrars and GP retainers  Source: The Information Centre for health and social care General and Personal Medical Services Statistics The Information Centre for health and social care Medical and Dental Workforce Census

Nursing Posts

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 5 January 2007,  Official Report, column 58W, on nursing posts, 
	(1)  if she will take steps to ensure that her Department collects figures on the number of nursing posts being held open in the NHS;
	(2)  what representations she has received on nursing posts held open within the NHS.

Rosie Winterton: The Department has no plans to collect data on the number of nursing posts being held open in the national health service.

Pregnancy Book

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the review of screening for kernicterus commissioned by the National Screening Committee will finish; and when she expects the Department's Pregnancy Book will next be revised.

Ivan Lewis: It is expected that an initial report on screening for kernicterus will be presented to the United Kingdom national screening committee at its next meeting in March 2007. Further work has already been commissioned to complete the review.
	Currently there are no plans to revise the 'Pregnancy Book'.

Pregnant Mothers: Scans

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is her policy that pregnant mothers should have a scan at 12 weeks.

Ivan Lewis: Guidance on the timings of ultrasound scans is contained in the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's (NICE) clinical guidelines on antenatal care, which were issued in October 2003. The guidelines recommend that pregnant women should be offered an early ultrasound scan to determine gestational age and detect multiple pregnancies. Ideally, such scans should be performed between 10 and 13 weeks.

Pride London Parade

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to her Department was of its float in the 2005 Pride London parade.

Rosie Winterton: The Department sponsored a float for the 2005 Pride London Parade at a cost of £2,000.

Public Service Agreements

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many public service agreement targets were set for the national health service by the Treasury and her Department since 1997.

Andy Burnham: Public service agreements (PSA) are agreed between HM Treasury and the Department as part of the spending review process and the Department is accountable for reporting to HM Treasury on progress against the PSA targets set.
	Since 1997, HM Treasury has set the Department the following PSAs spread over four spending review periods:
	
		
			   PSA targets 
			 1999-01 34 
			 2001-04 10 
			 2003-06 12 
			 2005-08 8 
		
	
	Prior to the 1999 Spending Review period, the Department was working under the "Our Healthier Nation" framework, published in 1996, which contained 27 targets.

Residential Care

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the figures for the number of adults placed in residential care out of areas for the year 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006 will be available.

Ivan Lewis: The Information Centre for health and social care published data on 31 October 2006, which detail the number of adults placed in residential care out of area as at 31 March 2006. The publication "Community Care Statistics 2006: Supported Residents (Adults), England" looks at this in chapter 5, and table S10 contains the detailed council table, which is available at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/ccs06suppres/sr1_2005-06web_v2.pdf/file
	Copies have been placed in the Library.

Sexual Health

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the £50 million advertising programme announced in 2004 to tackle the rise in sexual infections has been spent.

Caroline Flint: Announced as part of the Choosing Health White Paper, the Condom Essential Wear campaign was launched in November 2006. An integrated multi-media campaign, Condom Essential Wear targets some of the hardest to reach young people who are most at risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections.
	To date approximately £4 million has been spent on a combination of television, radio, press and digital advertising as well as substantial public relations and partnership work with both commercial and not for profit stakeholders and the production of two websites, one consumer and one stakeholder facing. Funding for the next financial year is currently being considered.
	Condom Essential Wear is one of three Government campaigns working to improve sexual health and reduce instances of teenage pregnancy, complementing the Department for Education and Skills campaigns, R U Thinking and Want Respect? Use a Condom. The total cost of this work across Government is £7.5 million this financial year.
	In addition, £2.6 million has been spent by the Department to fund work by the Terrence Higgins Trust and the African HIV Policy Network.

Sexual Health

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department spent on advertising sexual health services in  (a) Hertfordshire and  (b) England in each of the last five years.

Caroline Flint: Expenditure on sexual health advertising in England for the last five years including HIV public education, contraception awareness, prevention of sexually transmitted infections plus Helplines is set out in the following table. Information is not available for Hertfordshire centrally.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2002-03 6.600 
			 2003-04 6.600 
			 2004-05 6.600 
			 2005-06 5.120 
			 2006-07 7.300 
		
	
	This does not include the £1.61 million the Department gave to the Department for Education and Skills in 2006-07 to help fund its teenage pregnancy campaign 'RU Thinking' and its sexually transmitted infection campaign, 'Want Respect? Use a Condom.'
	 Notes
	Contract for the Sexual Health Information Line, (formerly the National AIDS Helpline) is delivered as part of a contract which also includes Drinkline and Frank (substance misuse prevention).

Sexual Health

Richard Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many girls  (a) under the age of 15 years and  (b) between the ages of 15 and 18 years (i) had abortions, (ii) gave birth and (iii) were diagnosed with sexually transmitted infections in each year between 1999 and 2005.

Caroline Flint: The available information is set out in the following tables.
	Figures are provided on number of conceptions leading to maternities and abortions for girls aged under 15 and 15-18 from 1999 to 2004 (latest year for which figures are available) so that meaningful comparisons can be made on number of abortions and maternities that occur each year by age of woman.
	
		
			  Conceptions leading to maternities and abortions by age, resident in England and Wales, 1999 to 2004 
			   Conceptions total  Conceptions leading to a maternity  Conceptions leading to an abortion 
			  1999
			 Under 15 2,272 959 1,313 
			 15-18 66,383 39,968 26,415 
			 
			  2000
			 Under 15 2,288 951 1,337 
			 15-18 65,241 38,668 26,573 
			 
			  2001
			 Under 15 2,290 908 1,382 
			 15-18 64,446 37,411 27,035 
			 
			  2002
			 Under 15 2,248 868 1,380 
			 15-18 65,613 38,388 27,225 
			 
			  2003
			 Under 15 2,222 804 1,418 
			 15-18 66,550 38,674 27,876 
			 
			  2004
			 Under 15 2,091 777 1,314 
			 15-18 67,480 39,221 28,259 
		
	
	
		
			  Total diagnoses of selected sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in genito-urinary medicine clinics; among females aged under 15 and 15-19, United Kingdom, 1999 to 2005 
			   1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Females Under 15 447 411 498 533 547 531 576 
			 Females 15-19(1) 25,447 27,965 30,217 32,695 35,495 37,579 38,389 
			 (1) Data are available for age group 15-19 rather than 15-18.  Note: Selected STIs include: infectious syphilis, uncomplicated gonorrhoea, anogenital herpes simplex (first attack), anogenital warts (first attack) and uncomplicated chlamydial infection.  Source: KC60 returns, Health Protection Agency.

Skin Cancer

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what procedures are in place to train health care professionals to check for signs of skin cancer.

Rosie Winterton: Setting curricula for undergraduate health professional training is the responsibility of the regulatory bodies and education providers. Training for those working in the national health service is the responsibility of employers. Local employers will have close regard to prioritising patient and service needs in supporting work force development. The Department shares their commitment to ensure that all health professionals are trained to have the skills and knowledge they need to deliver high-quality health care to the population.

Waiting Lists and Times

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the types of waiting lists recorded by her Department.

Andy Burnham: The Department receives and publishes list size and waiting time information on waits for first consultant out-patient appointments (from GP referral), 15 key diagnostic tests (from the decision to test), and in-patient admissions (from decision to admit).
	Mandatory collection and reporting of referral-to-treatment list sizes and times (the wait for first definitive treatment from the date of initial referral) begins in January 2007. The data will be published as soon as they are of sufficient quality, probably in the spring.
	The national health service also collects and reports waiting time, but not list size, information on cancer services, accident and emergency services, general practitioner and other primary care appointments, and ambulance response times.

Waiting Lists and Times

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting list times for  (a) patients and  (b) cancer patients of Hull and East Yorkshire hospitals were in each year since 1997.

Andy Burnham: The table shows the median waiting times for inpatients, outpatients and for diagnostic tests in the Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals National Health Service Trust from 1997. The two further tables show the median waiting times for inpatients and outpatients at the two predecessor trusts that merged to form the Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust.
	
		
			  Median waiting times for inpatients, outpatients and for diagnostic tests in Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust (provider based) 
			Median wait in weeks 
			  End of month  Year  Inpatient  Outpatient  Diagnostic test 
			 March 1997 16.5 4.6 n/a 
			 March 1998 18.3 4.6 n/a 
			 March 1999 17.8 5.3 n/a 
			 March 2000 17.0 6.9 n/a 
			 March 2001 15.0 7.6 n/a 
			 March 2002 16.8 9.1 n/a 
			 March 2003 15.1 8.3 n/a 
			 March 2004 11.6 8.6 n/a 
			 March 2005 10.3 8.9 n/a 
			 March 2006 9.1 7.4 5.1 
			 September 2006 9.0 8.3 4.8 
			 November 2006 8.1 n/a 5.7 
			  Note: Prior to the financial year, 1999-2000 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals Trust existed as two separate trusts, Royal Hull Hospitals NHS Trust and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust. Therefore, the figures given are based on a sum of the figures for these two trusts, the medians for which are provided in the two following tables. Inpatient and diagnostic waiting time based on median wait of those still waiting at end of period Outpatient waiting times based on time waited for those seen during the quarter.  Source: Department of Health, KH07, QM08, Monthly Monitoring and DMO1 
		
	
	
		
			  Median inpatient waits for Royal Hull Hospitals NHS Trust and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, provider based 
			   Median (Weeks) 
			  Month end  Royal Hull Hospitals NHS Trust  East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 March 1997 16.9 15.1 
			 March 1998 18.6 17.6 
			 March 1999 18.0 17.4 
		
	
	
		
			  Median outpatient waits for Royal Hull Hospitals NHS Trust and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, provider based 
			   Median (Weeks) 
			  Month end  Royal Hull Hospitals NHS Trust  East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 
			 March 1997 4.1 5.7 
			 March 1998 4.3 5.3 
			 March 1999 5.2 5.6 
		
	
	Average waiting times for the treatment of cancer patients are not collected centrally. Cancer waiting times standards of a maximum wait of 31 days from diagnosis to first cancer treatment and a maximum wait of 62 days from urgent referral to first cancer treatment were introduced for all cancer patients from December 2005. Data showing performance against these standards for the period July to September 2006 show that patients at the Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust achieved 98.4 per cent., and 89.3. per cent, respectively.
	More detailed information and historic statistics for these standards and the cancer two week wait are available at:
	www.performance.doh.gov.uk/cancerwaits.

Waiting Lists and Times

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations were performed within  (a) one,  (b) two,  (c) three,  (d) four,  (e) five,  (f) six,  (g) seven,  (h) eight,  (i) nine,  (j) 10,  (k) 11 and  (l) 12 weeks or more of referral from a general practitioner or specialist practitioner in each quarter in each of the last five years, broken down by acute hospital trust.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is not available.
	Voluntary collection and reporting of referral to treatment (RTT) data has been under way since autumn 2006. Mandatory national RTT waiting time collection for admitted patients begins this month, and for non-admitted patients in April. Publication will begin as soon as the data are of sufficient quality. For the admitted data this is likely to be in the spring; for the non-admitted data in the summer.
	The national health service undertook a baseline data research exercise in summer 2006 involving an estimation methodology that looked at hospital attendance and admission records from earlier in the year. The results, which do not have the status of official or national statistics but are available on the 18-weeks website (www.18weeks.nhs.uk) suggest that, nationally, in early 2006, the pathway of 35 per cent. of admitted patients and 70-80 per cent. of non-admitted patients met 18 weeks.

Waiting Lists and Times

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in East Sussex waited for more than six months for GP referral for elective operations in the last period for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: Robust information on waiting times from referral to treatment will be collected by the national health service for the very first time this month. Publication of the data for admitted patients is likely to be available in the spring and data for the non-admitted patients are likely to be available in the summer. This will help frontline staff to manage patient pathways properly and to track progress towards the 18-week maximum target wait.
	The current waiting time standards include a maximum six-month wait for in-patient treatment from the decision to admit. At the end of November 2006, there were six patients waiting over six months for in-patient admission in East Sussex Downs and Weald Primary Care Trust.

Whipps Cross Hospital

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the content was of the accompanying letter presented to her Department by the editors of the Waltham Forest and Wanstead and Woodford Guardians when they delivered a petition about Whipps Cross hospital in December; and what response she has made.

Ivan Lewis: A copy of each letter has been placed in the Library.

Working Time Directive

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has had with  (a) members of the European Commission and  (b) representatives of other member states of the European Union on the introduction of definitions of (i) on-call time and (ii) inactive on-call time into the European working time directive; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Together with many member states we continue to seek changes to the European working time directive to address the difficulties from the SiMAP and Jaeger judgments. Both the retention of the opt-out and a solution for the problems caused by these judgments regarding on-call time remain priorities for the UK. We will continue to try to secure an acceptable agreement with member states and the European Commission.

York Capio Centre

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many procedures for NHS patients will be  (a) paid for and  (b) provided by the York Capio Centre in 2006-07;
	(2)  what the  (a) national reference cost, (b) average cost per case at the York Capio Centre and  (c) average cost per case at York NHS Trust was for each procedure provided for NHS patients at the York Capio Centre in the most recent year for which figures are available;
	(3)  what the total NHS expenditure on the York Capio Centre will be in 2006-07.

Andy Burnham: Clifton national health service treatment centre in York is run by Capio UK. The treatment centre provides general surgery and orthopaedics.
	It is not possible to provide the data in the format requested. Reference costs data are collected from NHS trusts and primary care trusts. Reference cost data will cover procedures that are carried out by the trust and those that are contracted out, which will include to an independent sector treatment centre However, information on the payments for services and operational costs of Capio UK is commercially sensitive.